University of Utah tennis player charged with rape, documents say
Charges are allegations only. All arrested persons are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
SALT LAKE CITY () — A University of Utah tennis player has been charged with rape by the Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office.
Berk Bugarikj, 21, has been charged with six first-degree felonies. These include two counts of rape, two counts of forcible sodomy and one count of object rape.
Bugarikj is a tennis player for the U. He joined the team for the 2022 season, and ranked as high as No. 115 in the ITA in singles during the 2024-2025 season.
According to charging documents, the victim told the Salt Lake City Police Department that last year, she was sexually assaulted by Bugarikj on Nov. 16, 2024. She said that on that day, Bugarikj was with her and a group of friends at a bar in Salt Lake City.
Provo Police attempted to investigate Jake Retzlaff claims, report says
When the bar closed, the group went to Bugarikj's residence together. The victim told police that at this point, she and Bugarikj went into the bedroom together and began kissing. Bugarikj began making sexual advances on her, but she told him she 'didn't want to have sex.'
According to documents, Bugarikj replied with 'really?' and continued to make sexual advances without her consent. She told him several times to stop, and he prevented her from leaving at one point, the victim told police.
The victim went into the bathroom and requested a rideshare while she was away from Bugarikj. When she exited, he again assaulted her while she was waiting for the rideshare to pick her up. She left immediately when the vehicle arrived.
According to documents, Bugarikj is from Macedonia and is a scholarship student at a local university. A warrant has been proposed for his arrest, and Bugarikj is not currently in custody.
ABC4 has reached out to the University of Utah for a statement on Bugarikj's charges.
Judge orders federal prisons to continue gender-affirming care for transgender inmates
2025 Alliance RV Avenue All-Access 29RL
New 2025 Forest River RV Rockwood Signature 8336BH
University of Utah tennis player charged with rape, documents say
Utah Summer Games Block Party to feature food drive for Southern Utah University Hope Pantry
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Post
4 days ago
- New York Post
Two gangbangers who fatally shot boy, 11, in the head after mistakenly opening fire on his family learn their fate
Two gangbangers who fatally shot an 11-year-old boy in the head after opening fire on a truck carrying his family in New Mexico were sentenced to life in prison — with one of them flashing a cruel sneer at the youngster's loved ones during the proceedings. Jose Romero, 23, and Nathan Garley, 22, were sentenced Monday for unleashing dozens of rounds outside Isotopes Park in Albuquerque after mistaking the family's Dodge pickup for a rival gang, killing Froylan Villegas in the September 2023 attack, the Bernalillo County District Attorney's Office said. The boy's cousin, 23-year-old Tatiana Villegas, was also paralyzed in the heinous shooting. The child's mother and baby brother, who were also in the car when gunfire rang out, were unharmed. 4 Froylan Villegas, 11, was shot in the head and died during the savage attack. APD Chief of Police / X The grieving cousin, who saw Romero callously smirk at her devastated family as the judge handed down his prison term, blasted the remorseless thug for taunting them. 'Jose just sits there and basically laughs and taunts us, but after the judge sentences him, he didn't laugh no more,' Tatiana, who is wheelchair-bound after being shot multiple times, told KRQE. 4 Jose Romero, 23, callously smirked at the devastated family during sentencing. KOAT 7 'He took my best friend. I had to see my best friend die right in front of me. Not only that. He changed my life completely. He gets to sit here, smirk, walk, eat in jail, and I have to depend on my mom.' The defiant convict later asked to be escorted from the courtroom, saying 'I'm done here.' Despite the courtroom antics, Tatiana said she was grateful that justice was served. 4 Nathen Garley, 22. Albuquerque Police Department / Facebook 'We're very happy as a family that we got justice for Froylan and me,' said Tatiana, who is paralyzed from the chest down, KOAT reported. 'And that's what matters. The rest we leave in God's hands. We're glad to close this chapter and move on.' A jury in February convicted the violent duo of first-degree murder, tampering with evidence, shooting at or from a vehicle and other charges. 4 Jose Romero, 23. Albuquerque Police Department / Facebook In addition to their life terms, the judge tacked on another 46 years for the savage shooting. The ruthless attack sparked statewide uproar, prompting Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham to declare a public health emergency over gun violence. She also enforced a temporary carry ban in certain parks and playgrounds in the Albuquerque area. With Post wires
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Yahoo
Before the shots rang out, nonviolence and unity defined ‘No Kings' protest
People take part in the 'No Kings' protest in Salt Lake City on Saturday, June 14, 2025. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch) For more than two hours, 10,000 protesters coalesced in their anger against President Donald Trump and his policies to march peacefully through scorching Salt Lake City streets Saturday. They had cheered organizers' urging for nonviolence and reveled in moments of unity as they walked, from appreciative honks from waiting cars to church bells ringing out for them as they passed St. Mark's Episcopal Cathedral. Just before 8 p.m., gunshots sounded, sending the crowd scrambling. Police confirmed Sunday that an individual who they said was 'possibly part of the event's peacekeeping team' had spotted a man with a rifle approaching the marchers, and fired. That man, identified as 24-year-old Arturo Gamboa, sustained a minor gunshot wound and was later arrested and booked into jail for investigation of murder. An innocent bystander walking in the protest, Arthur Folasa Ah Loo, 39, was also shot. He died of his injuries Saturday night. A long list of questions remains. But up until that moment, the message of the event had been the same as protests happening in cities large and small around the country, part of a nationwide declaration of defiance of Trump coinciding with a large-scale military parade in Washington, D.C. marking the Army's 250th anniversary, a date that was also the president's 79th birthday. The Salt Lake City demonstration was the last and largest of 11 planned protests across the state Saturday, including a demonstration that drew thousands more to the University of Utah that morning. Speaking to reporters on a dark Salt Lake City street about two hours after the shooting, the city's police chief and mayor both praised the protesters for exercising their rights peacefully and without incident. 'We had thousands of people come out today, not only in Salt Lake City, but in protests around the state, protests around this nation, and they were, by and large, peaceful demonstrations,' Mayor Erin Mendenhall said. 'We are a nation that needs our First Amendment right. We deserve to be able to protest in peace. And what happened today, I hope, will not silence the voices of the public who deserve to have their voices heard.' Protesters' chants included 'This is what democracy looks like,' 'Trump is a felon,' and 'No hate, no fear, immigrants are welcome here.' There were also some unflattering shoutouts to elected Utah officials including Sen. Mike Lee, Rep. Celeste Maloy, Gov. Spencer Cox and state Rep. Trevor Lee. Despite Utah's unquestioned status as a red haven, with Republicans consistently holding the governor's office, all of the state's congressional seats and a supermajority in the Legislature, Utahns who disagree with Trump's politics have been making their voices heard in growing numbers since the president began his second term, including earlier in the week. Some protesters, like Ogden sisters Kimberly and Heidi Cruzatt, marched on behalf of those concerned about demonstrating publicly. They wore scrubs, a symbol of their Peruvian parents' work as CNAs. 'I believe it's not safe for them, and they have a family at home to take care of, so I don't want to risk them any harm being here,' said Heidi Cruzatt. Kimberly Cruzatt carried a poster styled after the broadway hit 'Hamilton' logo, including the line 'Immigrants, we get the job done.' 'It's about Alexander Hamilton, but since he's an immigrant, he's decided, 'OK, I think everybody who has come from different countries has collaborated in the community,'' she explained. Not far from the sisters was Rachel Blackmer, of Taylorsville, who teaches English to adult immigrants and trains foster parents to care for refugee teenagers. In the center of the sign she carried above her head, Blackmer drew a heart with words 'Protect the immigrants I love' inside, and dozens of names of her students appearing around it. 'Everyone I care about is being threatened right now. My students tell me about how scared they are, and they carry their ID with them, but that isn't even good enough. They're still scared, and I'm really excited to show them my sign and show them their names on it and why I'm here,' Blackmer said. Looking at the sea of people around her, Blackmer said she hopes the scale of the recent protests will spur change, comparing it to the height of Black Lives Matter protests in 2020. 'I'm really hoping that our country will respond even more than they did back then, this will be even bigger, and more people will respond,' she said. Why protest? 'They work,' she said.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Yahoo
Two found shot dead inside Massachusetts home in apparent domestic murder-suicide
Two people were found shot dead inside a Brockton home Tuesday evening in an apparent domestic murder-suicide, the Plymouth County District Attorney's Office said. Authorities began investigating the deaths after Brockton police received multiple reports that two adults had been found dead inside a home at 641 North Main St., authorities said. Officers responded to the home shortly before 5:45 p.m. and found the two bodies inside. Detectives from Brockton police and the district attorney's office are investigating. No further information about the deaths has been released. Starfires score 7, stifle late rally to knock off FCBL-leading Bravehearts Powerball: See the winning numbers in Wednesday's $101 million drawing Max Scherzer and Tanner Houck face Triple A at Polar Park Revere community mourns death of retired police officer who died in fire Worcester man charged with murder in fatal stabbing of college student from 2008 Read the original article on MassLive.
