Australian Football League Milne charged with rape

Australian Football League star Stephen Milne has been charged with rape after a police integrity unit recommended a review of the initial investigation into the incident in 2004.

Australian Football League star Stephen Milne has been charged with rape after a police integrity unit recommended a review of the initial investigation into the incident in 2004.

Victoria state police issued a statement Tuesday saying "it is a matter of regret that this review found the initial investigation to have been substantially inadequate."

Police said the defendant was a 33-year-old Cheltenham man. Domestic media identified Milne, who has played 268 AFL games for Melbourne-based St. Kilda, and said he's due to appear in court on July 5.

The Australian Broadcasting Corp. said police allege a 19-year-old woman was raped in a bedroom at a home belonging to one of Milne's teammates.

Both men had denied the allegations in the past, and the public prosecutor initially decided not to lay charges due to insufficient evidence.