Mumbai: West Indies cricketer Marlon Samuels filed a defamation case against former Australian fast bowler Geoff Lawson for malicious comments during a radio show in April this year.
Lawson accused the batsman of having gang connections in Jamaica.
According to reports, the statement was made by Lawson in a radio podcast called ‘Big Sports Breakfast’ a day after West Indies clinched the ICC World Twenty20 title for the second time. Samuels scored a half-century in the final and washed Shane Warne’s dirty linen in public.
Read: My face is real and Shane Warne's is not, says Samuels
“He’s tied up with some shady people back in the West Indies….he’s a guy you don’t muck around with on or off the field. He’s from Kingston, Jamaica, it’s one of the murder capitals of the world…he’s tied up with gangs there, it goes well beyond cricket,” Lawson said in the podcast.
However, he isn’t the only one sued for the act.
Journalist James Matthey wrote a story on news.com.au accusing the cricketer of being involved with gangs as well. It also highlights the tough talk about Warne at the post match conference.
Samuels found the whole episode injurious to his reputation as an international cricketer and wrote a counter argument.
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“Samuels has no criminal record nor has been the subject of any criminal investigations. The comments were published and aired with the absence of conducting proper journalist research, nor where Samuels contacted to give his views on the damaging remarks about his character. Through this case, I intend not only to defend my integrity and my image as an international cricketer but also the values I have defended all my career. I also wish to avoid any public figure from making insulting or false allegations against an athlete using the media, without any evidence or foundation and to go unpunished. If I win this case any compensation awarded I will donate some of the proceeds to the Marlon Samuels Society for the Blind in Jamaica,” he said.
