Victoria Police have seized an audio recording believed to contain accounts of events at the centre of the investigation into alleged sexual assault involving Sydney Swans players.<\/p>\n
According to the Sydney Morning Herald, the recording was taken from a Melbourne home in the days after the alleged incident at the Pullman East Melbourne hotel on August 17.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It is understood to\u00a0contain\u00a0detailed recollections from people who were inside the hotel room during the pre-dawn events.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Four Swans players\u00a0remain\u00a0persons of interest in the police investigation.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Isaac Heeney, Chad Warner, Nick\u00a0Blakey\u00a0and James Jordon have been\u00a0identified\u00a0by police as people under investigation after three women alleged they were sexually assaulted.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Another suspended Swans player, Riley Bice, is also\u00a0being treated as a potential witness.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Retired former Swans player Taylor Adams and another man who was\u00a0allegedly\u00a0inside the room are also being treated as witnesses.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The investigation centres on what happened after the Swans defeated Essendon at the MCG on\u00a0August 16.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The players were alleged to have continued partying before returning to the team hotel, where three women had been engaged as topless\u00a0waitresses.\u00a0<\/p>\n
A source close to the investigation, who was not authorised to speak publicly, told The Sydney Morning Herald that the recording captured recollections from people who were inside the room at the time.\u00a0<\/p>\n
A second source with knowledge of the events said the audio also\u00a0contained\u00a0accounts of what happened in the hotel lobby.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Swans officials, including coach Dean Cox, interacted with some of the women in the lobby after the alleged incident inside the room.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The existence of the recording was first raised with the football club shortly after the hotel incident.\u00a0<\/p>\n
A person who said they were connected to the women told the club that an audio recording existed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Swans passed the information to the AFL integrity unit, led by Tony Keane, which then\u00a0notified Victoria\u00a0Police.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Victoria Police said on Wednesday that detectives had travelled to Sydney to speak with four of the five Swans players originally connected to the investigation.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Police also said they had\u00a0identified\u00a0everyone who was inside the hotel room during the alleged incident.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Detectives from the Sexual Crimes Squad have spoken with three men who were believed to have been in the room.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Those men are being treated solely as witnesses.\u00a0<\/p>\n
No charges have been laid.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Victoria Police said the investigation was expected to continue for at least another eight weeks, meaning a further update may not come until late October.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The police investigation is separate from disciplinary action taken by the Swans.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The club suspended five players for the\u00a0remainder\u00a0of the AFL season after finding they had breached its behavioural standards.\u00a0<\/p>\n
That suspension does not relate to the sexual assault allegations.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The fallout has also put Blakey\u2019s future at the club in question.<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n The 26-year-old has\u00a0indicated\u00a0to associates that he wants to leave Sydney at the end of the season after his relationship with the club deteriorated.\u00a0<\/p>\n Blakey still has five years\u00a0remaining\u00a0on a contract worth more than $1 million a year.\u00a0<\/p>\n The Swans will continue their finals campaign without the five suspended players.\u00a0<\/p>\n Sydney faces Brisbane in a qualifying final at the SCG on Saturday, with the winner advancing to a preliminary final.\u00a0<\/p>\n The suspended players are not expected to attend the match.\u00a0<\/p>\n Swans\u00a0chairman\u00a0Andrew Pridham previously said the club\u2019s decision to suspend the five had \u201ceffectively torpedoed our season\u201d after Sydney finished second on the AFL ladder.\u00a0<\/p>\n Victoria Police declined to provide further details about the investigation.\u00a0<\/p>\n News24.com.au is not suggesting any criminal wrongdoing by any of the players.<\/p>\n Read related topics:Sport<\/a>Sydney Swans<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Victoria Police have seized an audio recording believed to contain accounts of events at the centre of 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