"I maintain I did not act inappropriately at any point before, during, or after a professional bodywork treatment session, nor have I ever been told I am unwelcome at any massage therapy provider. These claims are simply not true."

Those are the words of Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker in an exclusive statement to OutKick, his first public comments to the media since the initial accusations. 

Since January, a total of 16 massage therapists have accused Tucker of sexual misconduct and inappropriate behavior during sessions from 2012 to 2016 at eight spas in and around Baltimore. Initially, six accusers were included in a report from the Baltimore-area publication The Banner on January 30. 

NFL investigators were in Baltimore last week speaking to some of the accusers, ESPN reports. The Ravens could not be reached for comment for this story, but earlier this week at the NFL Combine in Indianapolis, general manager Eric DeCosta called the allegations "serious and concerning."

CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM

Tucker and his legal counsel, led by Joe Terry of Williams & Connolly's First Amendment practice group, deny all allegations and say they are determined to clear Tucker's name.

"Throughout the last four weeks, I have spent countless hours replaying every interaction I have had with bodywork professionals over the last thirteen years," Tucker told OutKick. "I can assure whoever is reading this that I have never intended to disrespect anyone, cross any boundary, or make anyone feel uncomfortable in any way whatsoever." 

"It devastates me to know that anyone I have worked with would not have felt respected and valued as a professional, but more importantly as a person, and to anyone who has felt otherwise, I am sorry," Tucker said in his statement, the full text of which can be found below. "I want you to know I am committed to ensuring that everyone I interact with continues to feel that I respect them and care about them as a human being."

Tucker said he began outside massage therapy in 2012 during his rookie season in Baltimore. He said at the time that the Ravens did not provide the services. After years of visiting local spas for his treatments, Tucker says he signed up for in-house massage therapy from RPMotion Therapy, LLC, in the summer of 2016 after buying a home in the suburbs of Baltimore. He and his wife, Amanda, had previously lived in the city in a condo at Ritz-Carlton Residences – where a therapist recently accused him of "exposing himself" during a massage session in 2013.

"G. gave Tucker two massages at the Ritz-Carlton in 2013 and said he repeatedly exposed himself and that she employed an intense massaging technique hoping to make him stop. ‘It was like a game’ for him, she said, adding that he exposed himself ‘more than I could count." She ended the first massage early, she said. After the second massage, he left behind what she believed to be ejaculate. ’It wasn’t sweat. You could tell what it was,' she said," the Baltimore Banner reports.

In response, Tucker's counsel references two sworn declarations from the previous owners of the Ritz-Carlton spa, disputing the accusations levied, which Outkick obtained.

His lawyer also cited Tucker's meticulous tax documents that the kicker kept of each massage session he attended, which they say show him attending the various salons in question well after his alleged misconduct. OutKick wasn't shown these documents. 

In one specific instance, Tucker's counsel said the kicker appeared for 14 different sessions at The QG salon in downtown Baltimore after alleged misbehavior. His legal team provided an email statement from one of the accusers telling him it had been "a pleasure working with you" when he canceled his membership on January 5, 2016.

Through an attorney, the owner of QG, Craig Martin, told The Banner he was unaware of any complaints against Tucker.

Tucker and his attorney also deny claims from the salon owners of the now-closed Studio 921 and Ojas that he was banned over his alleged behavior. According to the Baltimore Banner, the owner of Apothecary was the only other spa owner of the eight to confirm hearing about a specific allegation cited against Tucker.

Per his lawyer, Tucker attended the Ojas seven times in 2014 and Studio 921 18 times from 2013 to 2015. Tucker was accused by a therapist at Studio 921, according to The Banner, of "[being] erect for most of the massage session and regularly sought to expose his genitals." 

The Banner reported that he was banned from the establishment, but Tucker's lawyers pointed out that Studio 921, which closed in 2023, posted a promotional picture of Tucker on the website Trip Advisor a year after he was allegedly banned. The post remained on the site throughout the life of the business, as seen here.

Perry told OutKick that Tucker's wife, Amanda, had recommended several of the salons to her spouse as they frequently scheduled couples' sessions. Amanda called all the allegations against her husband "false" in an exclusive statement to OutKick:

"The false allegations against Justin have caused so much hurt to our family. I believe my husband, and I love and support him fully."

When asked about the details provided by Tucker's attorneys, Michael Belsky and Catherine Dickinson, the SBWD law firm partners representing most of Tucker's accusers, provided us with the following statement:

"We do not represent the spa owners, only the affected therapists. Whether the owners acted appropriately and in protection of their respective employees when faced with complaints is a question better directed to the them."

Justin Tucker's full statement to OutKick:

From the moment I first arrived in Baltimore in 2012, I felt embraced and supported by this amazing community, which I have come to love so much. Both on and off the football field, I have strived to reciprocate that love and support through hard work and dedication to my sport.  I have sought to treat everyone with kindness, dignity, and respect, and to set the type of positive example that makes my family proud to call me a father, husband, and friend and encourages members of this community to be proud to call me one of their own.

It is with all of that in mind that the allegations against me are so shocking and heart-breaking. I maintain I did not act inappropriately at any point before, during, or after a professional bodywork treatment session, nor have I ever been told I am unwelcome at any massage therapy provider. These claims are simply not true. Throughout the last four weeks, I have spent countless hours replaying every interaction I have had with bodywork professionals over the last thirteen years. I can assure whoever is reading this that I have never intended to disrespect anyone, cross any boundary, or make anyone feel uncomfortable in any way whatsoever. It devastates me to know that anyone I have worked with would not have felt respected and valued as a professional, but more importantly as a person, and to anyone who has felt otherwise, I am sorry. I want you to know I am committed to ensuring that everyone I interact with continues to feel that I respect them and care about them as a human being.

Since I began working as a professional athlete, I came to recognize the importance of receiving consistent professional bodywork. By investing my time and resources to restorative bodywork — with licensed therapists at respected places of business and at my home — during the times where I’m most active as a football player, I have experienced considerable health and athletic performance benefits. Physical therapy and massage therapy are a large part of why I’ve been consistently healthy and available during the football season. In fact, both my wife and I continue to count so many of those professionals as our friends. I absolutely respect the massage therapy profession and more so the individuals who work as massage therapists. 

Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.

The sheer scale of cuts the Trump administration is looking to carry out at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has been revealed, with nearly 15,000 grants worth $60 billion set to be eliminated, according to internal documents.

The grants amount to about 90% of foreign aid contracts and come after a review on spending by the State Department. 

USAID aid became an early target of the Trump administration, with the president being a longtime critic of overseas spending, arguing that it does not benefit the American taxpayer and going so far as to call those who run the top agency "radical lunatics."

USAID INSTRUCTIONS FOR FIRED EMPLOYEES GIVES THEM 15 MINUTES TO GATHER BELONGINGS FROM SHUTTERED DC BUILDING

Republicans argue it is wasteful, promotes liberal agendas and should be enfolded into the State Department, while Democrats say it saves lives abroad and helps U.S. interests by stabilizing other countries and economies.

In all, the Trump administration said it will eliminate 5,800 of 6,200 multi-year USAID contract awards, for a cut of $54 billion. Another 4,100 of 9,100 State Department grants were being eliminated, for a cut of $4.4 billion, according to a State Department memo reviewed by the Associated Press.

The State Department memo described the administration as spurred by a federal court order that gave officials until the end of the day Wednesday to lift the Trump administration’s monthlong block on foreign aid funding.

"In response, State and USAID moved rapidly," targeting USAID and State Department foreign aid programs in vast numbers for contract terminations, the memo said.

The memo said officials were "clearing significant waste stemming from decades of institutional drift." More changes are planned in how USAID and the State Department deliver foreign assistance, it said, "to use taxpayer dollars wisely to advance American interests."

U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Roberts on Wednesday paused a federal judge’s order that required the Trump administration to pay around $2 billion in foreign aid funds to contractors by midnight. 

SECRETARY OF STATE RUBIO CONFIRMS BECOMING ACTING USAID CHIEF

The ruling comes after the Trump administration asked the Supreme Court for an emergency order to block the release of U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) funding, which the federal judge had required by midnight. Officials had said they would not be able to comply with the judge’s order.

USAID was set up in the early 1960s to act on behalf of the U.S. to deliver aid across the globe, particularly in impoverished and underdeveloped regions. The agency now operates out of 60 nations and employs some 10,000 people, two-thirds of whom work overseas – though most of the on-the-ground work is contracted out to third-party organizations funded by USAID, according to a BBC report.

But the agency has come in for considerable criticism as Trump and Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) look to root out waste, fraud and abuse in the federal government. 

Musk likened the agency to "not an apple with a worm in it," but "just a ball of worms." 

"You’ve got to basically get rid of the whole thing. It’s beyond repair., Musk wrote on X earlier this month.

Trump has moved to gut the agency after imposing a 90-day pause on foreign aid. The Trump administration plans to gut the agency and intends to leave fewer than 300 staffers on the job out of the current 8,000 direct hires and contractors. He has also appointed Secretary of State Marco Rubio as the acting director of USAID.

The news comes as thousands of staffers were notified weeks ago about pending dismissals. Some were seen leaving Washington, D.C., offices for the last time on Friday carrying boxes scrawled with messages that seemed to be directed at President Donald Trump.

Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, the Senate DOGE Caucus Chairwoman, recently published a list of questionable projects and programs she says USAID has helped fund over the years, including $20 million to produce a Sesame Street show in Iraq. 

Several more examples of questionable spending have been uncovered at USAID, including more than $900,000 to a "Gaza-based terror charity" called Bayader Association for Environment and Development and a $1.5 million program slated to "advance diversity, equity, and inclusion in Serbia's workplaces and business communities."

Fox News’ Bill Mears, Andrew Mark Miller, Aubrie Spady, Deirdre Heavey, Caitlin McFall, Morgan Phillips and Emma Colton as well as Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith seemingly agreed with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ stance on paying yearly property taxes.

DeSantis proposed the idea of getting rid of property taxes in the state as he talked about establishing a Department of Government Efficiency-like task force to help trim the state’s spending.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM

"Just for being on your property, you’ve got to write a check to the government every year, so you’re basically paying rent to the government to live on your own property," DeSantis said, via Florida Voice News.

"There’s homestead stuff that helps protect you to a certain extent, but you’re paying more, and a lot of people can’t afford that, so I think that’s a big issue, and I know we’re going to be really looking at ways to bring people relief from that, because I think it’s been really something that’s pinching a lot of homeowners, particularly seniors on fixed incomes," he added.

Smith reacted with one emoji on X, suggesting the Republican governor was on point.

EX-PATRIOTS RUNNING BACK RECALLS BILL BELICHICK PUTTING HIM IN 'FAT CAMP' AFTER HE WAS DRAFTED

Smith is signed with the Seahawks through the 2025 season. He has earned more than $67.4 million in his career, according to Spotrac.

DeSantis endorsed the idea earlier this month on X.

"Property taxes are local, not state. So we’d need to do a constitutional amendment (requires 60% of voters to approve) to eliminate them (which I would support) or even to reform/lower them," he wrote in a social media post.

"We should put the boldest amendment on the ballot that has a chance of getting that 60%. I agree that taxing land/property is the more oppressive and ineffective form of taxation."

Fox News’ Alex Nitzberg contributed to this report.

Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.

• North Korean troops have returned to fighting alongside Russia, South Korea's spy agency said.
• It also said there appears to have been a deployment of fresh troops.
• Ukraine said in January that at least 3,800 North Koreans had been killed or wounded in the war.

North Korean troops have returned to fighting alongside Russia, South Korea's spy agency said, following reports of earlier heavy losses.

"Following about a monthlong lull, North Korean troops were placed back in the frontline region of Kursk starting in the first week of February," South Korea's National Intelligence Service said in a note to the press seen by South Korean news agency Yonhap.

"It appears that there has been a deployment of additional troops, but their size is still being examined," the intelligence agency said.

The note came after South Korean newspaper The JoongAng cited unnamed sources as saying that Russian cargo ships and military aircraft had transported between 1,000 and 3,000 additional North Korean troops sometime in January or February.

Business Insider was unable to independently verify the claim.

Last fall, Western and South Korean intelligence agencies said that Pyongyang had sent around 11,000-12,000 troops to fight in Kursk, the Russian region under partial occupation by Ukraine.

Russia was estimated to be paying around $2,000 a month per soldier, though the soldiers themselves are unlikely to see much of that.

Dmytro Ponomarenko, Ukraine's ambassador to South Korea, told Voice of America in November that Pyongyang would likely maintain a presence of up to 15,000 troops in the war, rotating soldiers every two to three months.

He said this could mean 100,000 North Korean troops cycling in and out of combat within a year.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said last month that at least 3,800 North Koreans had been killed or wounded in Kursk.

The UK's Ministry of Defence also said earlier this month that North Korean units had been withdrawn from frontline positions, likely to rest and refit before being redeployed.

"This is almost certainly primarily due to heavy losses sustained during attacks against Ukrainian-held positions," it said.

Pyongyang has sent some of its best units to Russia — special forces including members of its elite 11th Corps, also known as the "Storm Corps," considered to be committed and hardened fighters.

But the US said in December that North Korean troops were being sent on "hopeless" human wave assaults against Ukrainian positions, taking more than 1,000 casualties in the space of just one week.

According to the Kyiv Independent, Russia has, in recent days, ramped up its attacks in Kursk. The region is considered a key negotiating chip in any coming peace talks between Ukraine and Russia.

Here's a look at one player from all 32 teams who could use a change of scenery for the upcoming season.

Our fantasy experts discuss which player ranked outside the top 50 they want to have on as many 2025 fantasy baseball teams as possible.

Eric Karabell serves up a list of currently injured players to keep on your radar.

The Google Store has introduced a Pixel, Nest, and Fitbit “Devices” page to “Manage your Made by Google hardware in one place.”

more…

One of the questions raised by the iPhone 16e naming is whether it points to an annual update to the entry-level iPhone, with an iPhone 17e following next year.

A leaker who got early wind of the the iPhone 16e name says there are already signs that this may be the case, with a codename believed to reference next year’s model …

more…

Cannoli's reaction to the dogs running around her has delighted viewers; one said the pup looked "appalled by all this roughness."

Multiple states in the U.S. Northwest were forecast to see wintry conditions on Thursday.

Ukrainian troops risk "operational encirclement," one pro-Kremlin account claimed.

A new executive order from President Donald Trump to strengthen DOGE has placed a 30-day freeze on all government issued credit cards.

Conceding to Vladimir Putin's demands would effectively hand over 1 million Ukrainians to Russia, the Washington think tank said.

Kyra Shishko thought she knew everything about her grandfather, but the CV offered a closer look at the early part of his life.

Bondi responded to a report that former FBI Director James Comey ordered an "off the books" investigation of Trump's 2016 campaign.

The unofficial agency is pursuing layoffs and office closures as part of its mission to eliminate waste in the federal government.

The iconic actor, 95, and his wife, 64, were found dead at their Santa Fe, New Mexico home alongside their dog on Wednesday, Feb. 26

The girl was given an identification number on Wednesday, Feb. 26

Fred Rogers, better known as Mr. Rogers, died at age 39 in February 2003