Rape investigation that Swedish media say focused on Kylian Mbappé has been closed

STOCKHOLM — Swedish prosecutors on Thursday dropped a rape investigation that was launched in connection with soccer star Kylian Mbappé's visit to Stockholm in October. “During the course of the investigation, there has been a designated person suspected on reasonable grounds of rape and two cases of sexual assault, but my assessment is that the evidence is not sufficient to proceed and the investigation is therefore closed,” Chirakova said. “The designated person has not been notified of suspicion of a crime.” Prosecutors never publicly named the suspect in the investigation, but many Swedish media reported it was Real Madrid striker Mbappé, who visited Stockholm in October during a break in the Spanish league. In an interview that aired Sunday on French TV station Canal Plus, Mbappé said he was “surprised” by the reports that he was the subject of a rape investigation and he had not been contacted by Swedish authorities.