Former NFL defensive back Darren Sharper has been charged with drugging two women and raping them after they passed out, the Los Angeles district attorney s office said in a criminal complaint filed Friday.
Prosecutors are asking that bail for Sharper be raised to $10 million based on the investigation of the alleged rapes in California, as well as three additional allegations in New Orleans, Arizona and Nevada. Sharper was arrested in Los Angeles on Jan. 17 and released after posting a $200,000 bond.
The charges against Sharper in California have been expanded to include two counts of rape by drugs, four counts of furnishing a controlled dangerous substance and one count of possession of a controlled dangerous substance, according to a statement released by prosecutors. All of the charges are felonies.
Sharper is accused of using morphine and zolpidem to drug the women, then raping them when they were unconscious in two separate attacks, one on Oct. 30, the other on Jan. 15.
Deputy District Attorney Stacy Okun-Wiese will ask a judge to raise his bail to $10 million because Sharper, who lives in Miami, Fla., is suspected of raping women in Arizona, Nevada and Lousiana, the press release states.
The investigation in Louisiana centers on an alleged sexual assault by Sharper on Sept. 24 in the city s warehouse district.
When Sharper was arrested in Los Angeles on Jan. 17, he was immediately suspended indefinitely without pay from the NFL Network where he had been a consultant. Sharper previously was an analyst for WWL-TV in New Olreans for one month, in August 2012.
The 38-year-old Sharper spent 14 years in the NFL. He played for three teams, the Green Bay Packers, the Minnesota Vikings and the New Orleans Saints. He was a five-time Pro-Bowl selection and was on the Saints Super Bowl championship team in 2009. Following his second year with the Saints in 2010, Sharper announced his retirement.
