Minnesota wrestlers, including one from Clovis, suspected of criminal sexual conduct

A former Clovis High School wrestler was arrested on Saturday along with a University of Minnesota teammate on charges of sexual misconduct.

Dylan Martinez, 21, and Gable Steveson, 19, remained in jail on Monday.

Martinez competed at Clovis High School and Fresno City College before joining the Minnesota team as a redshirt in 2018. Steveson is a heavyweight star wrestler who placed third at this year’s NCAA championships.

The pair were arrested after someone reported Saturday night that they had been raped and went to a hospital for treatment. The alleged attack happened shortly after 1 a.m., according to a police report released Monday that lacked many details, including the age and gender of the accuser or specifics about what allegedly transpired.

Steveson’s attorney, Christa Groshek, said Steveson is shocked by his arrest and that he had been cooperating with police “because he felt that he didn’t have anything to hide.”

It wasn’t immediately clear whether Martinez has an attorney. Messages left with several possible relatives by The AP were not returned.

The university’s athletics department said in a statement it was “aware of a situation involving two of our student athletes” and that the two were suspended from all team activity pending further information. The statement didn’t identify the athletes or their sport.

Hennepin County prosecutors have until noon Tuesday to charge the two, seek an extension or release them.

Steveson was a four-time state champion at Apple Valley High School in Minnesota. This season, he had a 35-2 record — his first competing for the Gophers — and he placed third at the NCAA championships.

Martinez was a two-time state champion at Fresno City, wrestling at 149 pounds and helping the Rams to state titles in 2016 and 2017. Prior to that he wrestled for Clovis High at 126 pounds and helped the Cougars to a 91-dual winning streak in 2016.

This isn’t the first time that University of Minnesota athletes have been accused of sexual misconduct. In September 2016, a female student alleged she was gang raped in an incident that implicated 10 football players. Criminal charges were not filed, but five students were ultimately expelled or suspended, while five others were cleared.

Then-football coach Tracy Claeys was fired after he expressed pride in the players. Minnesota basketball standout Reggie Lynch was accused of sexual assaulting two women on separate occasions in 2016. He was never criminally charged and denied the allegations, but dropped an appeal of his expulsion last year. Also in 2016, wrestling coach J Robinson was fired after an investigation into the way he handled an alleged drug ring involving the anti-anxiety medication Xanax. Four wrestlers were suspended in connection with that incident.

This story was originally published June 17, 2019 at 4:27 PM.