A young Long Island woman who spent over a year insisting that she was raped by two Sacred Heart University football players officially admitted in court Tuesday that she’s been lying the entire time.
Nikki Yovino, 19, pleaded guilty to charges of falsely reporting an incident and interfering with police, according to the Connecticut Post.
The former college student reportedly accepted a plea deal, and will now serve a reduced sentence of one year in prison. She had been facing six.
Yovino agreed to the deal just as jury selection was getting ready to begin in her false rape trial, the Post reports.
“We were prepared to go to trial on the original felony charge, but after lengthy discussions with all parties involved and considering all outside factors, this was an appropriate disposition that will hopefully set a precedent about how serious the state takes this conduct,” Senior Assistant State’s Attorney Tatiana Messina told the judge in Yovino’s case.
The New York native has been defending her rape accusations since February 2017, when she was first charged by Bridgeport Police.
Cops claimed in the arrest affidavit that Yovino filed rape charges against the two Sacred Heart football players in October 2016 — and then recanted her story three months later.
She claimed that the assaults went down inside of a bathroom at an off-campus house party.
“I don’t want to be in here, I don’t want to do anything,” Yovino recounted telling the men during police interviews. She claimed that the bathroom was in the basement, and that the individuals held her down and took turns assaulting her.
“My friends are waiting for me outside, let me go outside,” Yovino recalled saying.
While both men admitted to sleeping with her, they claimed that the sex was completely consensual. Their lawyer, Frank Riccio II, told the CT Post on Tuesday that they are now thinking about suing Yovino for all the trouble she put them through.
“While this disposition does not replace that which the boys lost, it does send a powerful message that lying about a serious incident carries serious consequences,” Riccio said.
He told reporters on Monday that Yovino’s actions had “seriously affected” the former athletes.
“They’re no longer in school,” Riccio said. “The loss of their education and the college experience has certainly affected them greatly. And this is all because of a very serious lie.”
With Post wires