Tanner Bruhn cleared as prosecutors drop sexual assault, rape charges against Geelong AFL player

Prosecutors have dropped sexual assault and rape charges against Geelong AFL player Tanner Bruhn and his co-accused, Patrick Sinnott, after a lengthy investigation of an alleged rape of a woman in a car, ESPN reported. The pair appeared before the Geelong Magistrates Court on Tuesday, where the charges of rape and intentional sexual touching were formally withdrawn.

According to ESPN, Bruhn’s identity, which had been previously suppressed, was made public after his barrister requested the lifting of the suppression order following the prosecution’s application. Both men consistently maintained their innocence throughout the proceedings.

The allegations stemmed from an incident on February 5, 2023, when prosecutors claimed Bruhn and Sinnott raped a woman in her car after leaving a Geelong strip club in the early morning hours. The alleged assault was said to have occurred in a Dan Murphy’s car park in the nearby suburb of Belmont.


CCTV footage reportedly showed the woman leaving the strip club with the two men around 4:21 a.m. and arriving at the car park minutes later, but the alleged assault was not captured on video. The woman’s car was later seen leaving the area around 5 a.m. Bruhn attended Tuesday’s hearing via video link, while Sinnott appeared before the court in person.

The Geelong Football Club has also confirmed that Bruhn will rejoin the team for the start of pre-season training.

"While legal proceedings have been ongoing the Club has provided professional welfare to Tanner during this time and will continue to do so," a club spokesperson said, as quoted by ABC News.

Bruhn, 23, joined Geelong from GWS ahead of the 2023 season and has since played 36 games for the Cats.