'I'm devastated': Wallaby star pleads not guilty to sexual assault
NEWS: Suspended Wallabies playmaker Kurtley Beale said Thursday “the truth will come out” after he pleaded not guilty to sexually assaulting a woman at a Sydney pub, reports said.
The veteran of 95 Tests was arrested in January and charged over an alleged incident in the bathroom of a pub the previous month.
Rugby Australia suspended him from all forms of the game.
The 34-year-old faced Sydney’s Downing Centre Local Court charged with three sexual offences after one charge was dropped by prosecutors.
Beale’s lawyer entered not guilty pleas on his behalf to sexual intercourse without consent and two counts of sexually touching another person without consent, national broadcaster ABC reported.
“I’m devastated to be here today [thursday]. I am not guilty,” Beale told reporters outside court, adding: “The truth will come out.”
Fullback Beale returned to Australia last year after a stint with French side Racing 92, hoping to make the Wallabies squad for this year’s World Cup.
He made his debut for Australia in 2009.
