4 days ago
University of Utah tennis player charged with rape, documents say
Charges are allegations only. All arrested persons are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
SALT LAKE CITY () — A University of Utah tennis player has been charged with rape by the Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office.
Berk Bugarikj, 21, has been charged with six first-degree felonies. These include two counts of rape, two counts of forcible sodomy and one count of object rape.
Bugarikj is a tennis player for the U. He joined the team for the 2022 season, and ranked as high as No. 115 in the ITA in singles during the 2024-2025 season.
According to charging documents, the victim told the Salt Lake City Police Department that last year, she was sexually assaulted by Bugarikj on Nov. 16, 2024. She said that on that day, Bugarikj was with her and a group of friends at a bar in Salt Lake City.
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When the bar closed, the group went to Bugarikj's residence together. The victim told police that at this point, she and Bugarikj went into the bedroom together and began kissing. Bugarikj began making sexual advances on her, but she told him she 'didn't want to have sex.'
According to documents, Bugarikj replied with 'really?' and continued to make sexual advances without her consent. She told him several times to stop, and he prevented her from leaving at one point, the victim told police.
The victim went into the bathroom and requested a rideshare while she was away from Bugarikj. When she exited, he again assaulted her while she was waiting for the rideshare to pick her up. She left immediately when the vehicle arrived.
According to documents, Bugarikj is from Macedonia and is a scholarship student at a local university. A warrant has been proposed for his arrest, and Bugarikj is not currently in custody.
ABC4 has reached out to the University of Utah for a statement on Bugarikj's charges.
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