Details emerge from Raiders top pick Gareon Conley’s meeting with police Monday

Today was the day. Gareon Conley met with the police in Cleveland on schedule Monday about the alleged sexual assault a young woman is accusing of him from back on April 9.

At that meeting, Conley gave a voluntary statement to police as well as took a DNA sample. Keep in mind, Conley has not been arrested or formally charged in this case.

There were some interesting things learned, however, as NFL media’s Ian Rapoport detailed this afternoon.

First off, the investigation by Cleveland police is said to be completed. From here it will go to the County Prosecutor for review. That process is expected to take 6-8 weeks to complete. At the conclusion of which, they would presumably decide whether any charges are to be filed. So we should know by mid-late June, which is just after mandatory minicamps and the start of the big break before training camp.

Second, Conley has admitted to having a sexual encounter with the young woman. He is insisting it was consensual.

Update: Conley’s lawyer has clarified that when he says there was a sexual encounter, he is not referring to actual intercourse. He has reiterated that intercourse did not take place. That’s important to note.

Third, Conley’s lawyer, Kevin Spellacy, said police showed him video of Conley and the accuser holding hands and walking down the street outside the hotel. This would appear to be differ from what the young woman initially told police. She said the two had met in the elevator and then went to his room with him.

As Rapoport notes, what exactly that means with regard to the case is unclear. And it would be reckless to assume the new tape would suggest either Conley or his accuser were not telling the truth. At this point, it is simply a new detail in the case not previously revealed.

The Raiders have said they feel comfortable with the selection of Conley as their pick at 24 overall in the draft last Thursday. They made the pick confident he would be exonerated of these allegations. We will have to wait a bit longer to know for sure if their confidence was warranted.