Former North Carolina State University athletic trainer Robert Murphy Jr. faces more than two dozen charges, including nine felonies, after being criminally charged in Wake County over allegations of sexual contact under the guise of medical treatment. Murphy was already facing allegations in a 2022 civil lawsuit filed by dozens of former Wolfpack male athletes. He now faces nine counts of serious sexual contact under the guise of medical treatment and 23 counts of misdemeanor sexual assault. He was arrested Wednesday night and is being held in Marion County, Florida. The charges stem from 14 different cases with offense dates listed from October 2016 to September 2021, according to unsealed indictments released Thursday night. © Ocala Police Department Murphy was Director of Sports Medicine for the state of North Carolina from January 2012 until June 2022, when he resigned. Murphy was suspended from office in January 2022. A Wake County grand jury indicted Murphy on September 14 in part on allegations that in the fall of 2020 he intentionally committed a felony when, during the course of medical treatment, he indicated that sexual contact between Murphy and an unnamed plaintiff was necessary and that the plaintiff’s health would benefit from the contact. Prosecutors allege the act violated a North Carolina law that prohibits sexual contact under the guise of medical treatment, according to documents seen by WRAL. Jared Hammett, an attorney who represented Murphy in previous civil cases, previously said that Murphy would love the opportunity to clear his name. On Thursday, he and attorney Seth A. Blum said they were disappointed by the presentation of the case. “We are very disappointed that the Wake County District Attorney’s Office decided to prosecute based on a changing story,” Hammett and Blum said in a statement to WRAL. “Four years ago, law enforcement concluded there was not enough to support the charges. Apparently, after careful editing, someone came up with a story that caught the prosecutor’s attention. “We, as always, believe that when people hear the true facts of what occurred, Mr. Murphy will be acquitted and the truth will be paramount.” North Carolina State Chancellor Kevin Howell served in the North Carolina state administration for all but two years beginning in 2006 and became chancellor in 2025. He is a former North Carolina State athlete “NC State does not tolerate sexual assault of any kind,” Howell told WRAL before the North Carolina State Board of Trustees meeting on Thursday “We care about our students. We care about our student athletes. That was something that happened, I think, years ago, but we are cooperating fully with the investigation. We do not tolerate sexual assault of any kind. Period. “I don’t want to go into the details because it’s an ongoing case and we’re not allowed to talk about it; this is a criminal case. But I just want our students to know that NC State does not condone sexual assault of any kind.” NC State released a statement Thursday morning. “Sexual misconduct of any kind is unacceptable,” NC State said in the statement. “The health and safety of students and student-athletes is paramount to NC State Athletics and the university. We are aware of the charges brought by Wake County against Robert Murphy. We will cooperate with authorities in this matter.” In 2022, Murphy was sued in federal court by former NC State football player Benjamin Locke over allegations that Murphy touched athletes’ genitals during treatments that did not require it. The case has since expanded to more than 30 athletes, who have accused Murphy of similar allegations. Locke and Parker Cross, also a former football player, are the only plaintiffs named in the civil suit. The rest are listed as John Doe. According to the civil complaint, athletes in 2012 began complaining about Murphy’s “unnecessarily intrusive sample collection methods” for mandatory drug testing. In 2014, Murphy made male soccer players “feel very uncomfortable during deep tissue groin massage treatments and during urine sample collections for drug testing.” The civil complaint states that knowledge about Murphy was widespread throughout the athletic department. In 2016, some in the department were concerned about “Murphy’s inappropriate sexual behavior toward football players.” In June, a Wake County judge dismissed a civil lawsuit filed by the athletes against Murphy and a series of North Carolina state officials. Some claims filed against university officials should be handled by the North Carolina Industrial Commission, the judge wrote. “These charges against Rob Murphy validate Ben Locke and 33 other former Wolfpack athletes and reinforce their claims of being sexually abused at NCSU,” said Kerry Sutton, an attorney for the athletes in the civil case. “Our fight for these men and others expected to come forward will not stop until Murphy and NC State are held accountable to these young men and the people of North Carolina. Anything less is unthinkable.” Sexual contact under the guise of medical treatment is a Class C felony in North Carolina and conviction carries a sentence of up to 182 months. Conviction under the statute requires mandatory registration as a sex offender. Sexual assault is a misdemeanor. “We appreciate the hard work of law enforcement and the courage of the victims in this case,” Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman said in a statement Thursday. “We are determined to seek justice.”
