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2 Tennessee Volunteers Football Players Implicated in Rape and Sexual Assault Investigation

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Two members of the University of Tennessee - Knoxville (UTK) are under investigation for rape and sexual assault, though neither has been charged.

A source within the Knoxville Police Department (KPD) confirmed to the Tennessean that the two suspects are senior linebacker A.J. Johnson and sophomore defensive back Michael Williams. A 19-year-old female student at UTK said she was raped early Sunday morning by two male students while a female student from out of town said she was sexually assaulted the same night.

The KPD said in a statement that the officers located two 19-year-old female victims" when they arrived at the off-campus residence building. However, the KPD could not say if the two incidents were related.

UTK head football coach Butch Jones said in his weekly news conference Monday that he has not made any decisions on any players' statuses.

"I want to be right, rather than fast," the coach said, confirming that the incident involved members of the Volunteers football team.

The KPD did not officially release the names of the suspects, as there are no charges filed as of Monday afternoon. A spokesman included that he does not expect there to be any by the end of the day either, the Knoxville News Sentinel reported.

"We don't anticipate charges today," officer Darrell DeBusk said. "Once we finish our investigation, we'll turn it over to the district attorney."

As the Knox County District Attorney General Charme Allen determines whether or not to pursue charges, UTK will gather all the facts they can. Jones said the school will pass its own judgment at such a time.

"A search warrant was conducted last night on the apartment at the Woodlands Apartment Complex," DeBusk said, adding that one suspect lives in the apartment. "Neither have been interviewed at this moment, but I expect that to change."

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