A woman who’d accused former Major League Baseball pitcher Trevor Bauer of sexual assault has been indicted by an Arizona grand jury on a felony charge of theft by extortion and one count of fraudulent schemes and artifices. This, in effect, exonerated Bauer in the case.
According to ESPN, the indictment stated that Darcy Adanna Esemonu “knowingly did obtain a benefit from [ . . . ] Trevor Anthony Bauer by means of fraudulent pretenses, representation, promises, or material omissions.” The indictment was filed Monday, April 15, in the Superior Court of Arizona in Maricopa County.
The indictment also stated that, regarding another individual not associated with Bauer, Esemonu “knowingly did obtain or sought to obtain property or services [ . . . ] by means of a threat to in the future expose a secret or an asserted fact in a social media message or in any other manner.” Her theft by extortion charge only concerned the other individual.
An arraignment hearing in the case is set for April 26 in Maricopa County.
Bauer countersued after demands, lawsuit
Esemonu had filed a lawsuit against Bauer in 2022, which she updated in 2023, alleging that he sexually assaulted her in 2020, leading to an “unplanned pregnancy.” She reportedly demanded money after claiming he had impregnated her.
In court briefings, Bauer’s lawyers described the situation as “a single sexual encounter” that “was consensual.” Bauer has also said, “We had one plain sexual encounter in December of 2020—nothing that could be considered remotely rough.”
In a statement given to ESPN by Bauer’s attorneys, the pitcher said Esemonu had demanded $3.6 million from him and “claimed I forced her to have an abortion,” and “when I refused to pay her the $3.6 million she was asking for, she made up a bogus sexual assault claim and filed a civil suit against me.”
Having never been charged for the allegations, despite the woman filing a criminal complaint, Bauer countersued Esemonu for fraud. He said she was attempting to harass him and extort money from him in the wake of similar allegations made against the former Cy Young Award-winning pitcher by other women.
His countersuit claimed that he initially responded to the pregnancy claim by paying her $8,761 related to the supposed pregnancy and abortion. In a video statement this week, Bauer said she then demanded $3.6 million for “forcing her to have an abortion.”
In his video statement Tuesday, April 16, Bauer said the woman “claimed I forced her to have an abortion, leaving her ‘emotionally devastated and irretrievably damaged’ by it. But here’s the thing: She never had an abortion, because she was never even pregnant, and that’s corroborated by her own medical records.”
ESPN said police reports showed that when Esemonu was interviewed by a detective after her claim of sexual assault, she “initially stated she had a miscarriage, but later referred to the miscarriage as an abortion.”
Police said she claimed to have miscarried right before going to a clinic in another state. However, the detective said the medical records she provided “do not indicate” whether she “was in fact pregnant.”
“Her m.o. is clear,” Bauer claimed in his video. “Lie to men to get their money. Extort them if she must. When they refuse to pay, stop paying or stop giving her what she wants, go to the police, accuse them of sexual assault, and file a civil suit against them to retaliate.”
Is It a Crime to Falsely Accuse Someone of a Sex Offense?
Is a false report of a sex crime a crime in itself? Maybe, but it depends.
Extortion, fraudulent claims can lead to years in prison
Theft by extortion, in the case of the other man, involves a person unlawfully seeking property by accusing someone of a criminal offense. In the case of Bauer, fraudulent schemes and artifices involves seeking a benefit under false pretenses.
According to the New York Post, Esemonu could face more than 16 years in prison if convicted on both charges she now faces.
Bauer has faced previous assault allegations
In April of 2022, after allegations of sexual assault by a woman in San Diego, Bauer received an unprecedented 324-game suspension by the MLB for violating the league’s domestic violence and sexual assault policy. The woman had claimed he beat her and sexually abused her in 2021. Bauer denied this and said their relationship was consensual.
Bauer’s suspension later was reduced to 194 games by an arbitrator, but his team at the time, the Los Angeles Dodgers, elected in January of 2023 to designate him for assignment. That meant he was removed from the team’s roster and placed on waivers.
Since no other team claimed him from waivers, the Dodgers remained responsible for the remaining $22.5 million Bauer was owed on his 3-year, $102 million contract. Nonetheless, the suspension itself cost Bauer $37.6 million in salary, according to the Associated Press.
Bauer has not played in the major leagues since June of 2021, prior to his lengthy suspension. Since the suspension, he has pitched in Japan and Mexico in an effort to work his way back to the major leagues.
It is believed that this week’s events, signifying Bauer’s exoneration, pave the way for his return to the major leagues.
What to Do When Facing False Accusations of a Sexual Crime
Have you been subjected to false sexual claims or allegations? If so, you should know it’s a serious legal matter, even if those claims are utterly false.
False claims of sexual assault target others
Other men have also faced false claims of sexual assault, including actor Kevin Spacey, who had a civil lawsuit filed against him by another actor dismissed as a false sex abuse claim.
Also, a Virginia jury awarded actor Johnny Depp $10 million in compensatory damages and $5 million in punitive damages in his defamation lawsuit against his former wife Amber Heard after she’d accused him of abuse.
In addition, a Houston man who’d been accused of felony sexual assault in Aspen, Colorado, in 2021 had the charge dismissed by the Aspen District Attorney’s Office. A criminal defense lawyer for the accused man said the charge lacked foundation, and the claims of the alleged victim were not credible but were, in fact, false.
Get a skilled Houston-area sexual assault defense lawyer
If you or a loved one in Houston, Sugar Land, Katy, The Woodlands, Conroe or elsewhere in the Houston area faces a claim, accusation, allegation or charge of sexual assault, you must get an experienced, knowledgeable and skilled sexual assault defense lawyer to stand up for your legal rights.
