Cleaves allegedly kept sex assault victim from leaving motel three times

(WJBK) - Former Michigan State University basketball star Mateen Cleaves is facing criminal charges.
 
A woman he met at a charity golf outing says he took her to a hotel near Flint and raped her.

The beloved former MSU basketball legend is facing some serious charges. Sources tell FOX  2 investigators were able to get their hands on some pretty damning video from the Genesee County motel where Cleaves allegedly held a woman prisoner and sexually assaulted her.

This all started last September, that's when Cleaves met the 24-year-old woman at a charity golf outing. After the outing cleaves, the woman, her boyfriend and several others went to a local bar.

When it was time to go, we're told the woman's boyfriend drove a friend home, the woman got in the car with Cleaves.

She thought she was going back to the golf course but instead Cleaves drove her to the Mundy Township hotel where he already had a room.

That's where the woman says Cleaves held her against her will and sexually assaulted her.

Sources say investigators were able to pull the surveillance video from the motel, which shows the alleged victim, basically naked, trying to escape the room three separate times and each time Cleaves allegedly grabbed her by the wrist or picked her up and dragged her back to the room.

The third time the woman was able to yell to a woman who was outside at the time to call 911 that she needed help.

That was when Mundy Township police arrived.

"That's a loaded word - 'dragged' her back to the motel room," said Cleaves' attorney Frank Manley. "How about trying to save some drunk lady from walking around with no clothes on who may have been drinking all day.

"If someone was really raped do you think the first thing that they might say to police is I was attacked. Or do you think it’s something you might want to contemplate as time goes on?"

When police arrived FOX 2 is told the woman did not initially report the rape.

In fact, the police actually drove Cleaves home. The 24-year-old did eventually go to the hospital, get a rape kit and tell investigators what happened, who discovered the surveillance video which helps back her claims.

Manley questions the timing of the charges with MSU set to begin the NCAA tournament and the authenticity of the video - and whether it was edited. Manley said he has not seen it yet.   

Cleaves is expected to be arraigned later this week in Genesee County.

UPDATE: Cleaves was arraigned Wednesday morning. He received a bond of $150,000 personal bond and is due back in court March 29. 

Cleaves took to Twitter to issue a statement about the charges, calling them false.