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Rehage Accused Of Rape
Steve Rehage of
Rehage was arrested and booked into the Orleans Parish Jail on one count of simple rape. He was released on $10,000 bail, according to Times-Picayune.
A police report obtained by the paper says the alleged victim claims Rehage raped her after the two met for dinner and drinks June 21.
The woman admitted to police she drank martinis while waiting for Rehage to arrive at the restaurant, then more martinis after he arrived. The woman claims to remember being seated at the bar with the promoter, then waking up lying naked in a bed, disoriented, with Rehage allegedly on top of her with his hands around her neck, the paper said.
The alleged victim claims that after Rehage fell asleep, she called friends and family on her cell phone because “she was in danger and unaware of her location.”
However, when officers arrived at the location, the woman didn’t report a sexual assault. The alleged attack was reported to police July 26, according to police documents obtained by the Times-Picayune.
However, the victim, after being taken home by police, went later to Interim LSU Public Hospital and had staff members perform a sexual assault examination on her. It reportedly revealed vaginal tears symptomatic of forced sex and bruises around her neck consistent with strangulation. Her visit was classified as “unreported” because she did not wish to report the incident to police, according to court documents.
Also, a toxicology report text taken during the examination showed she ingested propoxyphene and diphenhydramine, according to a police report, which cause drowsiness that is increased by alcohol. She returned to the hospital and said she did not knowingly take the drugs, according to the report.
In a statement, Pat Fanning, attorney for Rehage, told Pollstar the woman’s claims are bogus.
“Stephen Rehage has been a prominent member of the New Orleans business community for many years. His reputation has been unblemished and he has been involved in numerous charitable activities,” Fanning said in the statement, “He has now been wrongly accused of a crime, which he did not commit.
“It is his intention to vigorously defend himself against these unfounded allegations and he is confident that when this matter is concluded, he will be vindicated.”
Fanning told WVUE-TV text messages were shared between Rehage and the alleged victim that showed a friendly relationship between the two. Fanning claimed the woman said she was raped to cover up the relationship to her boyfriend.