A star athlete on Brigham Young University’s football team, wide receiver Parker Kingston, has been arrested on a first-degree felony rape charge, according to prosecutors.
The charge stems from an investigation that began a year ago involving a sexual assault report made by a 20-year-old woman, who shared with police she had been sexually assaulted to police. The woman spoke to investigators while being treated at the St. George Regional Hospital in Utah, the Washington County Attorney’s Office said in a news release issue on Wednesday, February 12.
The woman told police that Kingston sexually assaulted her on February 23, 2025, in St. George, the attorney’s office said.
Kingston, 21, has been arrested in connection with the alleged incident and was booked at a Washington County jail, where he is being held without bail, the attorney’s office said.
It was not immediately clear whether Kingston had retained legal representation or entered a plea as of the afternoon of Thursday, February 12.
BYU Athletics said in a statement shared with ABC4 Utah that: “BYU became aware today of the arrest of Parker Kingston.”
“The university takes any allegation very seriously, and will cooperate with law enforcement,” BYU added. “Due to federal and university privacy laws and practices for students, the university will not be able to provide additional comment.”
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Kingston, who is from Layton and attended Roy High School, is a junior at BYU where he is studying business, according to his online athlete profile.
He is hailed as the “only player in BYU history” to have made a passing touchdown, a rushing touchdown, a receiving touchdown and a punt return touchdown, according to the university, which is located in Provo.
Kingston is also “the third player in Big 12 history to have multiple career games with a passing and receiving touchdown” and was once named the Big 12 Special Teams Player of the Week, the university says online.
His arrest comes after the Washington County Attorney’s Office said that St. George detectives “gathered digital and forensic evidence” linking him to the alleged rape and interviewed witnesses.
Kingston was considered BYU’s top pass catcher at the end of the 2025 football season, CBS Sports reported. He made 66 catches and scored five touchdowns during the season.
On January 2, he publicly shared plans that he would be playing his final season for BYU next year, according to CBS Sports.
In a statement, the Washington County Attorney’s Office said prosecutors “takes allegations of sexual assault seriously.”
“We thank our partners in law enforcement and the medical professionals who assisted in this investigation,” the attorney’s office added.
The office said that it will not currently be making additional statements to the media, as of February 11.
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Kingston is due to make his first appearance in Utah’s Fifth Judicial District Court the afternoon of February 13, according to prosecutors.
Prosecutors are asking anyone who might have information related to the alleged sexual assault involving Kingston to call the attorney’s office at (435) 301-7100.
If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).