Mariano Rivera, wife Clara react to child sex abuse allegations

New York Yankees legend Mariano Rivera and his wife, Clara Rivera, have been accused of ignoring the sexual abuse of a child who was a member of their church. The couple has now broken their silence on the allegations that were brought to light on Jan. 22.

The young girl was born in 2007 and was a member of the Riveras’ Refuge of Hope Church in Westchester County, New York.  At the time of the alleged assault, she was a minor.  In the lawsuit, she is referred to as “Jane Doe”  and claims that an older girl sexually abused her during a 2018 summer internship program at the Ignite Life Center in Gainesville, Fla.,  and another time at the Riveras home in Rye, N.Y., the lawsuit alleges. The older girl is identified in the lawsuit as “MG.”

The filing alleges that the young girl was also sexually abused by Ruben Tavarez Jr., the son of the Refuge of Hope associate pastor Ruben Tavarez Sr., in August 2021.

“Rather than take sufficient action to end the sexual abuse of Jane Doe, the Riveras each separately isolated and intimidated Jane Doe to remain silent about her abuse by MG to avoid causing trouble for Refuge of Hope and the Ignite Life Summer Internship,” court documents read.

The filing alleges that the Riveras “falsely promoted their activities and premises as being safe, moral, and otherwise free of a risk of harm when it knew or should have known otherwise.”

The plaintiff wants to take the Riveras to court for their alleged neglect.

“Parents and churchgoers should be grateful, as I am, that this brave child is coming forward to expose wrongdoers,” the girl’s attorney Adam Horowitz told PEOPLE in a statement. “Reporting sex crimes is always tough, especially when those who conceal them are powerful and popular. We are prepared to litigate this serious matter in Court.”

Mariano and Clara Rivera React To Allegations

In a statement made by the couple’s attorney, Joseph A. Ruta, they denied the allegations brought upon them.

“Mariano and Clara Rivera do not tolerate child abuse of any kind and allegations that they knew about or failed to act on reports of child abuse are completely false,” Ruta, told the New York Post.

“The very first time they heard about these allegations was nearly four years after the alleged incident, when in 2022 a New York attorney sent a letter requesting a financial settlement,” the Riveras’ attorney continued. “This was followed by a second letter in 2023, from a different Florida law firm, again requesting a financial settlement. The lawsuit, which seeks financial damages for the Riveras’ alleged failure to act on alleged incidents that were never reported to them, is full of inaccurate and misleading statements which we have no doubt will not hold up in a court of law.”

Mariano is known as a former pitcher of the New York Yankees. Clara serves as the church’s head pastor.