Police investigate after private photos, videos of Wisconsin volleyball players leaked

MADISON, Wis. — University of Wisconsin police are investigating after private photos and video of the school’s national championship women’s volleyball team were shared publicly on the internet.

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In a statement, the university’s athletic department said players contacted campus police after learning that the photos had been made public.

“The unauthorized sharing is a significant and wrongful invasion of the student-athletes’ privacy, including potential violations of university policies and criminal statutes,” the statement said.

On Wednesday, the athletic department said the images came from the phone of a team member and were never intended to be seen publicly, the Wisconsin State Journal reported.

Athletic department officials did not offer details about the photos and videos, but the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported that it received a photo from a person who said it was one of the images in question. The photo appears to have been taken after the team clinched the Big Ten title last November, according to the newspaper.

In the photo, some team members can be seen posing with their sports bras lifted.

Under Wisconsin state law, anyone who posts online locker room images of players without their consent could be charged with a felony punishable by up to 3 1/2 years of combined prison and extended supervision, the Wisconsin State Journal reported. The person who took the images would face up to nine months in jail if they were taken without the subjects’ consent.

If people in the images are younger than 18, it’s a six-year felony, according to the newspaper.

“UWPD is not investigating the volleyball student-athletes for wrongdoing in this matter,” the athletic department said in its statement. “Our top priority is supporting our student-athletes and we are providing them with the appropriate services and resources.”

Most of the content has been removed from the websites where it was posted, the Journal Sentinel reported.

University of Wisconsin police spokesperson Marc Lovicott confirmed the investigation on Thursday, according to The Associated Press.

The Badgers have played in the last three Final Fours and reached the final three times in the last decade, according to the Wisconsin State Journal. This year, the team (13-3, 7-1 Big Ten) is ranked No. 5 in the nation.

The team returns to action on Friday night against Michigan State.

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