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Justin Tucker is addressing recent allegations.
The Baltimore Ravens kicker spoke out after six massage therapists accused him of engaging in inappropriate sexual behavior while they were treating him at four separate spas and wellness centers between 2012 and 2016. And in his response, Tucker denied the accusations—reported by The Baltimore Banner on Jan. 30—describing them as "unequivocably false."
"Throughout my career as a professional athlete, I have always sought to conduct myself with the utmost professionalism," Tucker said in a statement shared to X Jan. 30. "I have never before been accused of misconduct of any kind, and I have never been accused of acting inappropriately in front of a massage therapist or during a massage therapy session or during other bodywork."
The NFL player—who shares son Easton, 8, with wife Amanda Bass—went on to say that he has never "received any complaints," been "dismissed from a massage therapy or body work session" or told that he was "not welcome at any spa or other place of business."
"In accusing me of misconduct, the article takes innocuous, or ambiguous, interactions and skews them so out of proportion they are no longer recognizable, and it presents vague insinuations as fact," Tucker continued. "This is desperate tabloid fodder."
In addition to denying the sexual misconduct allegations from the anonymous massage therapists—five of whom alleged the 35-year-old asked them to massage his pelvic region while he had an erection, two of whom accused him of brushing them with his exposed genitals and three of whom said he left what they believed to be ejaculate on the massage table after their sessions—Tucker accused The Baltimore Banner of "deliberately misconstruing events as nefarious" and "relying on third party speculation to create the false, preconceived narrative about me that they believed would generate clicks."
Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images
"As a matter of principle, I respect when individuals come forward to report misconduct of any kind," Tucker continued. "I support a process that allows claims to be properly investigated. But, for the sake of myself and my family, I cannot allow false claims to go unchallenged. I cannot be any clearer."
He added, "These allegations are false and incredibly hurtful to both me and, more importantly, my family."
Since Tucker shared his statement, The Baltimore Banner hasn't directly addressed the allegations the athlete made against them. However, the publication did provide some insight into its decision to investigate the massage therapists' accusations.
"It's about numerous women reporting very inappropriate behavior by a high-profile public figure that has never been brought to light before," Baltimore Banner reporter Justin Fenton said during a Jan. 30 appearance on the The Banner Ravens Podcast. "These are serious allegations; the allegations are numerous. It's not just a couple people."
And the Baltimore Ravens also spoke out, sharing in a Jan. 30 statement to E! that they were "aware of Baltimore Banner’s story regarding Justin Tucker as well as his response."
The team's statement added, "We take any allegations of this nature seriously and will continue to monitor the situation."
Echoing their sentiment, the NFL said in a separate statement shared to its website that the organization would "look into the matter."
E! News reached out to a rep for Tucker, as well as The Baltimore Banner, for comment but has not heard back.
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