Detectives investigating allegations of sexual assaults inside a Melbourne hotel room where Sydney Swans players were celebrating a win against Essendon have yet to hand their brief of evidence to prosecutors.
In an update on the case on Tuesday night, Victoria Police said that the investigation remains open and there is currently no timeframe for when it will conclude. No charges have been laid.
The Pullman Five, as they have become known, were suspended from the club for breaching rules around drinking following a night of partying with strippers inside the Pullman Hotel in east Melbourne on August 17.
The sexual assault allegations are separate to the suspensions, with investigators since interviewing Isaac Heeney, Chad Warner, James Jordon and Nick Blakey. The fifth player, Riley Bice, is being treated as a witness.
Victorian detectives travelled to Sydney earlier this month to officially interview the four players. Another three witnesses in the room on the night were also interviewed.
‘Police now believe they have identified all parties who were in the room at the time of the alleged incident, and are not looking for anyone further,’ police said.
They will likely take their time on the investigation considering the immense attention the case has generated.
Victoria also does not impose limits for how soon charges need to be pressed for serious offences.
Riley Bice, Chad Warner and Isaac Heeney are pictured at Swans headquarters last week for regular season-end player exit meetings and to address their teammates after completing their club suspensions
Victoria Police said the investigation into alleged sexual assaults inside a Melbourne hotel was ongoing (pictured is a generic photo of a hotel room at the Pullman East Melbourne)
The Daily Mail previously revealed how the night after Sydney’s win over Essendon at the MCG descended into chaos when a small group of players hired female entertainers to attend the Pullman East Melbourne hotel (pictured)
It is, however, expected the Victorian Director of Public Prosecutions will receive a brief of evidence before November, including whether charges are being considered against any of the four players.
Once prosecutors have examined this, a decision would be made on whether there is a reasonable prospect of a conviction before it would be decided to press charges and proceed to court.
Daily Mail does not suggest any wrongdoing on the part of the four players, only that they have spoken to police as part of the investigation.
The specific nature of the allegations has not been publicly confirmed, though one allegation reported is that a player slapped one of the strippers on the bottom more times than she had agreed to.
It has also been reported police have obtained an audio recording from a Melbourne property which allegedly captures descriptions of the events being investigated.
One source said the recording contained detailed accounts from people who were inside the hotel room, which included the Sydney Swans players and also detailed how two other men had engaged three women to entertain them as topless waitresses.
A second source said the recording also contained accounts of what happened in the hotel lobby that morning, where Swans officials, including coach Dean Cox, were seen interacting with some of the women who had earlier been in the hotel room.
The club is refusing to comment about the investigation or the on-field future of the five players, who returned to the club for their post-season exit interviews last week.
Heeney and Blakey appeared tense when they returned to the club’s HQ for exit interviews last week
James Jordan accompanied Heeney and Blakey to Swans HQ, while Warner and Bice took another car
Steffie Waters is pictured with partner Isaac Heeney, earlier this month she appeared to have scrubbed him from her social media
It’s understood the Swans and the AFL were told of the recording, but had no confirmation of its actual existence or knowledge of its contents.
The recording is expected to form an important part of the investigation.
