Cowboys forward Scott Bolton charged with indecent assault
COWBOYS forward Scott Bolton appears to have fled Sydney after being charged with indecent assault during a night out at Bondi on Saturday with teammates. The rest of the North Queensland squad remain in Sydney ahead of Thursday’s clash with the Tigers.
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RUGBY league forward Scott Bolton has been charged with indecent assault after a night out at Bondi with his North Queensland teammates.
The NRL premiership-winning Cowboys player headed to the Bondi Beach Public Bar early on Saturday night for a meal and a few beers.
Coach Paul Green, team manager Peter Parr and chief executive Greg Tonner were not at the venue where, according to witnesses, a handful of players became intoxicated.
A woman made a complaint and was interviewed by police at the popular nightspot around 11pm.
By that time, Bolton had left but on Sunday morning he attended Waverley police station and was charged. He will appear in court on June 19.
The alleged incident is a huge black eye for the NRL and the code. The Daily Telegraph understands the NRL integrity unit was informed of the incident yesterday.
A NRL spokesman said Bolton would not be stood down at this stage.
“We will seek more details this week but we usually let the court process take its course,” he said. “That’s unless he pleads guilty and then we act immediately.”
The incident has shocked the Cowboys camp.
Bolton has always been considered one of the good guys and has never been in serious trouble.
“The last bloke you’d expect to get into strife,” one Cowboys official said.
Bolton has been married to wife Michelle since 2016.
NSW Police said in a statement that they had acted after receiving a complaint.
“A man has been granted conditional bail to appear in court later this month charged over the alleged indecent assault of a woman at Bondi Beach overnight,” the statement said.
“Police were called to licensed premises on Campbell parade about 10.50pm (Saturday 5 May 2018), after a female patron reported she had been indecently assaulted.
“Officers from Eastern Suburbs Police Area Command initiated an investigation and arrested a 30-year-old man about 9.20am (Sunday 6 May 2018) at Waverley Police Station. The man, who is from Queensland, has been charged with assault with an act of indecency. He was granted conditional bail to appear in Waverley Local Court on Tuesday 19 June 2018.”
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The Cowboys have been staying in Sydney after playing in Bathurst on Friday night to prepare for the game against the Wests Tigers at Leichhardt Oval on Thursday night.
Bolton has played 11 seasons and more than 200 games for the Cowboys.
The 30-year-old forward was a key member of North Queensland’s 2015 premiership-winning team.
“We’re just trying to get the facts,” a shaken Cowboys general manager Peter Parr said after The Daily Telegraph broke the story online yesterday.
“We won’t be making a statement before we know more.”
It was unclear if the Cowboys would stand Bolton down from this week’s clash against the Tigers but the North Queensland star appears to have left Sydney after being snapped by photographers at Brisbane airport on Sunday.