What was claimed
Multiple current and former Sydney Swans players have been arrested for sexual assault.
Our verdict
False. The cited players have not been arrested.
AAP FACTCHECK - Fake news Facebook pages are exploiting sexual assault allegations involving Sydney Swans players to spread false claims and drive web traffic.
The pages have claimed several players - some of whom no longer play for the AFL team - have been arrested following a sexual assault investigation.
It comes amid an ongoing police investigation into an alleged sexual assault at a Melbourne hotel following the Swans win over Essendon on August 16.
Five players - Isaac Heeney, Riley Bice, James Jordon, Chad Warner and Nick Blakey - have been suspended by the Swans for the rest of the season for "breaching club standards".
The AFL-endorsed club bans are independent of the police investigation.
At the time of writing, there have been no arrests in relation to the alleged sexual assault, and AAP does not suggest any criminal wrongdoing by players.
An account called Red Wave Footy is behind several of the false claims.
“Former Sydney Swans standout identified as a primary suspect in a shocking sexual assault investigation,” an August 18 post reads, alongside an image of Swans player Tom Papley headlined "ARREST".
Papley is not a former player, as the post claims, having made 17 appearances in 2026, including in the team’s August 15 clash against Essendon in Melbourne.
The post directs readers to an article peppered with ads and illustrated with several images of Papley, but without naming him or any other current or former player.
An August 17 post from the same account makes an almost identical claim about Swans legend Lance “Buddy” Franklin, swapping out the photo of Papley for an image of Franklin.
Franklin retired in 2023. Neither has been arrested.
Another near-identical claim appears in an August 17 Facebook post from an account called Harborline Gazette, which features an image of former Swans player Elijah Taylor.
The photo of Taylor was published on the Sydney Swans website more than five years ago, during his only season playing AFL.
Taylor played four games for the Swans in 2020 before an assault charge prompted the club to stand him down and eventually sever ties with him.
Taylor pleaded guilty to assaulting his girlfriend in a Perth hotel and was convicted and fined $5000 in December 2020. He has not played AFL since.
The Facebook post directs users to an article riddled with ads and featuring several other photos of Taylor from his brief stint as a top-flight footballer.
Facebook's transparency details show the Facebook page is managed by users in Vietnam and Egypt.
The former player is also named in another Facebook post by an account called Harbour City Footy.
The post includes a photo of Taylor playing for the Swans in 2020, once again overlaid with a banner reading “ARREST”.
The post directs users to another ad-laden article which contains details of Taylor’s 2020 assault case but makes no specific mention of a fresh investigation or arrest.
Facebook's transparency details show the page is managed by users in Vietnam, Canada, Peru and Senegal.
AAP FactCheck has debunked numerous disinformation operations spreading falsehoods about AFL players and staff.
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