Woman in Cincinnati Reds pitcher's Pittsburgh hotel room accused of lying after robbery
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Claudia Manrique
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A Maryland woman who claimed she was robbed in the Downtown hotel room of a Cincinnati Reds pitcher last month has been charged with filing a false police report.
Claudia Manrique, 26, of Silver Spring, at first told Pittsburgh police she was alone in the room of Aroldis Chapman the night of May 29 when she was attacked by a man posing as a maintenance worker for the Omni William Penn.
She said the stranger tied her up with cloth napkins when she refused to relinquish a bag containing $200,000 worth of Mr. Chapman's jewelry.
He was with his team playing against the Pirates at PNC Park and returned to find his belongings gone.
But under 12 hours of questioning, police said Ms. Manrique changed her story. She later told detectives she first encountered the assailant earlier at a Downtown CVS store, where he stole her wallet and threatened to hurt her female friend if she did not tell him her room number.
When he showed up at the room later in the night, she told police she let him in because she feared for her safety.
Ms. Manrique was at a loss to explain how the attacker knew Mr. Chapman's jewelry was in the room in the first place, according to police reports.
She faces a count of false reports to law enforcement, a misdemeanor. She was charged by summons.
Mr. Chapman told detectives he met the woman in April in the Washington, D.C. area, and she traveled to meet him in different cities.
First Published June 20, 2012 3:53 pm
