Police drag former Kiwi sportsman off Gold Coast flight, charge him with rape

A Kiwi man has been dragged off a flight heading from the Gold Coast to Auckland and charged with rape. Photo / 7News

A New Zealand man and former professional football player has been dragged off a flight from the Gold Coast to Auckland after allegedly raping a woman.

On Monday morning a 37-year-old woman reported to police she had been raped at a private residence on Sunday.

Just moments after she spoke to police, the man she accused of the attack reportedly tried to board a flight to Auckland.

Police at Coolangatta airport swiftly removed the man from the flight, holding him in a cell for the night.

The next morning police charged him with rape.

Police will allege the man's mother bought a one-way ticket for him to return to New Zealand on Monday night after she learned of the rape allegation, the Gold Coast Bulletin reported.

Police say the man entered the woman's house and pinned her to the bed, holding her arms and raping her.

It is understood the pair had been in a turbulent relationship for about a year, and the boxing trainer often told the woman he would be returning to New Zealand.

Posts on social media claim the man played professional football in the mid-1990s, and is well known for his charity work.

Facing a judge on Tuesday, he was granted bail after duty lawyer Dave Garratt told the court the man posed no flight risk as he had just signed a 12-month lease on his home.

The 47-year-old man, who moved from New Zealand more than 10 years ago, has been ordered to surrender his passport.

Magistrate Kerrie O'Callaghan granted bail on the condition he have no contact with the victim and report regularly to police.

The man will return to court on March 1.