One of the shareholders of the Houston Texans is facing serious criminal charges in the state of Kentucky.
According to ProFootballTalk, Houston businessman E. Javier Loya is facing one count of first-degree rape, five counts of first-degree sexual abuse and one count of third-degree sexual abuse. Per the report, the pretrial conference is slated for later this month.
The arrest warrant was issued in May but the date of the alleged incident(s) that led to the charges are not clear at this time.
In response to the charges, the Texans informed ProFootballTalk that they have agreed with Loya to remove him from any team or NFL activities while the charges are pending.
“We are aware of the serious charges filed in the Commonwealth of Kentucky against Javier Loya, one of our outside limited partners,” the Texans said in a statement. “We have agreed with Mr. Loya that while these charges are pending, he will remove himself entirely from any team or League activities.”
Meanwhile, the NFL informed PFT that he has been removed from all league committees and will not be permitted to participate in any activities within the league during the process.
“The club promptly notified the league of the serious pending charges against Mr. Loya after they were filed,” a league spokesperson told PFT. “Mr. Loya has not been permitted to participate in any league or club activity during this process. He is no longer on any league committees.”
Javier Loya, a minority owner of the Texans since 2002, faces one count of rape, five counts of first-degree sexual abuse, and one count of third-degree sexual abuse in Kentucky. https://t.co/qPGnqMvRlt
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) August 7, 2023
Enrique Javier Loya played football at Columbia, where he earned Honorable Mention All-Ivy League honors in 1990. He founded Choice! Energy LP in 1994 and became one of the first minority stakeholders of the Houston Texans when the team launched.
With his joining the Texans’ ownership in 2002, Loya became the first Hispanic owner in NFL history.