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Rape trial begins for former NFL player Kellen Winslow Jr.

Kellen Winslow Jr. leaves his arraignment in Vista, Calif., in June 2018.
(Hayne Palmour / Associated Press)
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Kellen Winslow Jr., a first-round draft pick whose father was a Hall of Famer who starred for the San Diego Chargers, goes on trial Monday on multiple charges. He’s accused of raping two women last year and the 2003 rape of an unconscious 17-year-old girl.

Winslow, 35, was once the highest-paid tight end in the NFL but saw his career sidetracked by injuries. He could face life in prison if convicted.

He has pleaded not guilty to all the charges, totaling 12 counts. A total of five women are listed as victims in the complaint, which also includes allegations of lewd conduct and indecent exposure.

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His attorney, Brian Watkins, said in an email to the Associated Press, “We look forward to vindicating Mr. Winslow.”

Winslow was initially arrested in 2018 after authorities said they had tied him to two alleged break-ins in Encinitas, one at the home of a 71-year-old woman on June 1 and another at the residence of an 86-year-old woman on June 7.

After posting bail, Winslow was arrested again on the additional charges of raping two women, a 54-year-old woman in March 2018 and a 59-year-old woman in May 2018. Both women were attacked in Encinitas. He is accused of kidnapping the 54-year-old.

Also in May of 2018, a 57-year-old woman accused Winslow of exposing himself to her. Another woman stepped forward to say she had been attacked by him when she was 17, according to the investigation.

While he was out on $2-million bail, Winslow was arrested on suspicion of lewd conduct in front of a 77-year-old woman at a gym on two separate occasions in February of this year. He has been jailed since without bail.

Prosecutors said he appeared to target middle-aged and elderly women.

Winslow is the son of Hall of Famer Kellen Winslow.

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The former University of Miami star had 469 catches for 5,236 yards and 25 touchdowns in 105 games.

Drafted No. 6 overall by Cleveland, he broke his right leg in his rookie season, then sustained a serious right knee injury in a motorcycle accident that offseason.

From 2004 to 2013, he played for Cleveland, Tampa Bay, New England and the New York Jets.

He was suspended in 2013 with the Jets for violating the league’s performance-enhancing-drug policy. That same year, he was arrested after a woman told police she saw him masturbating in a parked car outside of a New Jersey department store. Winslow was arrested on suspicion of possession of synthetic marijuana; the charge was dropped after he completed court-ordered terms.

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