Robert Murphy Jr., former North Carolina State director of sports medicine, was arrested in Florida on 32 charges accusing him of making sexual contact with former student-athletes while treating them.
A grand jury in Wake County grand jury indicted Murphy last week on nine felony charges of sexual contact or penetration under the pretext of medical treatment and 23 misdemeanor charges of sexual battery. Sexual battery is nonconsensual sexual contact for sexual arousal, gratification or abuse.
According to the The News & Observer, Murphy was arrested Wednesday in Ocala, Fla., on the charges Wednesday, according to inmate information on the Marion County Sheriff’s Office website.
Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman said her office is awaiting a decision on whether Murphy will fight extradition to North Carolina.
This is the first action taken in relation to allegations by athletes against Murphy that have made their way through federal, state and Wake County civil courts over the past four years.
Murphy denies all the allegations, his attorney Jarod Hammett has said.
Hammett contends the civil litigation was fueled in part by attorneys seeking a large settlement from N.C. State.
“Those who brought this suit think if they shout sexual abuse loudly, people will stop listening to the obvious,” Hammett told The News & Observer in June. “Maybe they’re right."
Kerry Sutton, an attorney representing 31 former students involved in the civil lawsuits, said the charges bolster the men’s claims of being sexually harassed and abused at N.C. State.
“Our fight for these men and others expected to come forward will not stop until Murphy and N.C. State stand accountable to these young men and to the people of North Carolina. Anything less is unthinkable,” Sutton wrote in a statement. “These charges against Rob Murphy validate Ben Locke and 33 other former Wolfpack athletes and bolster their claims of being sexually abused at NCSU. Our fight for these men and others expected to come forward will not stop until Murphy and NC State stand accountable to these young men and to the people of North Carolina. Anything less is unthinkable.”
A criminal investigation into Murphy was turned over to a grand jury, which was tasked with finding that a reasonable person would believe a crime was committed. The probable-cause standard is higher than reasonable suspicion but lower than the proof beyond a reasonable doubt required to convict someone.
Murphy’s was the director of sports medicine at NC State and then head athletic trainer. He started at the school in Janaury 2012 and quit in June 2022 amid an internal investigation after a former soccer player complained to police and the university earlier that year.
The News & Observer reported that the accusations became public when Benjamin Locke, an N.C. State soccer player from 2015 to 2017, filed a federal lawsuit in August 2022. Over time, 31 former male athletes joined the lawsuit, accusing Murphy of sexual harassment and abuse. The lawsuit moved to Wake County court in September 2025.
The athletes accuse Murphy of having them undress so he could stare at their genitals, as well as sexual abuse that occurred during treatments and massages.
