Police: UCLA Punter Arrested On Suspicion Of Rape

A UCLA punter has been accused of raping another student last year at an off-campus house party, Los Angeles police said today.

Adam Searl was arrested Thursday on three counts of sexual assault, according to police. He was taken into custody on campus and booked into an L.A. County jail, later released on a $300,000 bond.

Here is how police described what happened in their press release:

On October 19, 2014, a student at the University of California, Los Angeles, reported that she was the victim of a sexual assault. She had met the suspect outside of an off-campus house party in Westwood and he accompanied her to a nearby residence. She fell asleep and awoke to discover the suspect sexually assaulting her. After an exhaustive investigation, in conjunction with the University of California Police Department, she was able to identify UCLA student 20-year-old Adam Searl to detectives for the LAPD’s Operations West Bureau—Special Assault Section.

Detective Kimberly Porter, officer in charge of the Operations West Bureau—Special Assault Section, told us the nearly one-year gap between the assault and and the arrest was because of the time it took to identify Searl as the suspect. Officer Jack Richter gave more details to the , saying the victim didn’t know who her attacker was at first and they went through photographs and other evidence to finally identify the suspect.

After the arrest was announced, UCLA said it has indefinitely suspended Searl. A walk-on, he redshirted in 2013, had 11 punts in 2014, and five so far this season.

Police said they expect to present the case “for a felony filing consideration” to prosecutors on Tuesday. Jail records say Searl’s next court date is scheduled for Oct. 29.