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Father of Australian tennis star arrested on child sex charges
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 [July 26, 2017]
By Dan Whitcomb
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The father of
retired Australian tennis star Mark Philippoussis was arrested on
Tuesday at his San Diego home on suspicion of sexually abusing two
children who he has been coaching in the sport, police said.
Nikolaos Philippoussis, 68, will be formally charged at an
arraignmnent scheduled for Wednesday afternoon in San Diego County
Superior Court, said Lieutenant Greg Rylaarsdam of the San Diego
County Sheriff's Department.
He was being held at San Diego Central jail in lieu of $2.5 million
bond in the meantime.
Philippoussis was taken into custody at his home in the Mira Mar
neighborhood of San Diego after investigators established probable
cause to support sexual allegations made against him, Rylaarsdam
said.
Rylaarsdam said that the investigation was still "in the infancy".
"We would love to talk to anybody who has information about this
case, he said.
According to the San Diego County Sheriff's Department's inmate
tracking website, Philippoussis had been booked on suspicion of
sexual intercourse or sodomy with a child 10 years old or younger,
lewd and lascivious acts on a child under 14 and oral copulation of
a person under 18.
The arrest made headlines in San Diego, where
Philippoussis gives personal tennis lessons, and in Australia where
his celebrated for his successful pro tennis career.
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Tennis player
Mark Phillippoussis of Australia plays at the ball with the handle
of his racket as his father Nick Phillippoussis looks on during
practise at the Sydney International Tennis Centre
in Syndney, Australia, January 11, 2004. REUTERS/Will Burgess/File
Photo
Mark Philippoussis retired from professional tennis in 2015, having
reached a top ranking of Number 8 in the world. In 2003 he played in
the Wimbledon final, where he lost to Roger Federer.
Mark Philippoussis is not suspected of any wrongdoing in connection
with the case against his father, Rylaarsdam said, adding: "There
has been nothing in the investigation that would make us believe he
has anything to do with this."
(Reporting by Dan Whitcomb; Editing by Michael Perry) [© 2017 Thomson Reuters. All
rights reserved.]
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