STATE COLLEGE, Pa., Aug. 17 (UPI) -- A 25-year-old man sexually abused by Jerry Sandusky has agreed to a multimillion-dollar settlement with Penn State, his lawyer said Saturday.
The settlement with the man, identified only as Victim 5, is the first of 26 claims against the school to be settled in the sex abuse scandal involving Sandusky, who had been a longtime assistant of former Penn State Coach Joe Paterno, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported.
Michael Rozen, who is representing Penn State in the cases, and Thomas Kline, who represents Victim 5, would not reveal how much will be paid to the man, the Inquirer said
"The pivotal issue from the university's perspective in dealing with the victims is where the incident occurred and when it occurred proximate to the 2001 shower incident," Rozen said. "'No. 5' is probably the singular one of the claims that has come to the university's attention where it absolutely, positively could have been stopped."
Victim 5 said he was abused by Sandusky in a shower on campus in August 2001, six months after then-graduate assistant Michael McQueary told university officials he saw Sandusky rape a boy in a campus shower, the newspaper said.
Kline described his client as "relieved" by the settlement but said the man did not want to comment.
A total of $60 million has been allocated to settle the cases. All of the victims who have come forward have received paperwork for a financial settlement, sources told Penn Live.
Sandusky was sent to prison for molesting young boys connected to his charitable foundation. Some of the incidents took place on the Penn State campus where the former coach had free access.
Sources said university lawyers began sending the final documents Friday.
Penn Live said the settlements would shield the university from potential lawsuits by victims and the possibility of higher jury awards.
