Barcelona (AFP) – Brazilian soccer player Dani Alves denied in court this Wednesday, February 7, that he had raped a woman in a nightclub in Barcelona (Spain) and assured that the alleged victim was free to leave “at any time.” This is his statement on the last day of the trial against him in that Spanish city.
First modification: Last modification:
4 min
“I could leave at any time, I was not obliged to be there,” Brazilian soccer player Dani Alves declared this Wednesday, February 7, about a young woman who claims he raped her in a bar in Barcelona (Spain).
Alves insisted that he is not “a violent man,” during a statement lasting around 20 minutes at a hearing, in which he only responded to his lawyer.
“At no point did he say anything to me, we were simply both enjoying it,” insisted the 40-year-old former Barça or PSG player, who has been in preventive detention for more than 12 months for the alleged events that occurred on the night of December 30 to 31. of 2022.
Prosecutor Elisabeth Jiménez considered, however, that the woman presented an “absolutely credible story” since the investigations began, she assured that Alves used “violence” to force the young woman and He maintained his request for nine years in prison.
As in the two previous sessions, the athlete, handcuffed, was escorted by the agents to the room. Dressed in a white sweater, dark pants and glasses, he continued the hearing in silence and with a serious expression, until after four hours of the session – after the testimony of experts who attended to the alleged victim and the viewing of videos from security cameras – It was his turn to speak.
At first serene – but at times with his voice broken by emotion, especially when remembering when he found out that he was being investigated -, Alves said that that night, when he had “drank a lot”, he met the complainant in an exclusive area of the Sutton nightclub, they danced and, after a “sexual tension” arose, He suggested they go to the bathroom.
Once inside, according to her version, they had consensual relations and at no time did he slap her or grab her hair, as the young woman reported.
“I'm not that kind of man,” added the Brazilian, who justified his changes in version during these months by his initial attempt to tell a story that his wife could “forgive.”
“He did what he could”
The player's explanations did not convince the Public Ministry, which maintained its request for a nine-year prison sentencein addition to the payment of compensation of 150,000 euros (about $162,000) to the woman and another decade of supervised release after serving the sentence.
“If at a certain time [la joven] It says 'up to here', it's 'up to here'.
Mr. Alves cannot continue if the victim does not give his consent,” the prosecutor stressed about what could have happened in the bathroom of the private room, shortly after Alves and the complainant – who testified on Monday, February 5 under a series of measures to protect their anonymity – met in the VIP area of the premises.
In that cubicle, according to the prosecutor, the soccer player attacked her and forced them to have sexual relations, despite the woman's attempts to prevent it, who “did what she could.”
Alves' lawyer, Inés Guardiola, requested, however, the acquittal of her client, arguing that the athlete could not “know that the complainant had revoked her consent.” In case of conviction, the lawyer mentioned alcohol consumption as one of the possible mitigating circumstances.
After three days that aroused great media attention, The three magistrates of the court will deliberate a sentence that could take a few weeks.
Possible drunkenness
Almost thirty witnesses appeared during these days, among them the two companions of the young woman that night, who confirmed the state of shock in which she left the bathroom, “crying inconsolably,” according to her friend, and reporting that the soccer player had done “a lot of damage.”
Several of the police officers and employees of the premises who attended to the complainant – currently undergoing psychological treatment – also influenced her state of “shock”, as well as her initial reluctance to report the events.
“She told me that they weren't going to believe her, that she had entered voluntarily, but then she wanted to leave and couldn't,” said one of the people in charge of the room.
The testimonies from those around Alves focused, for their part, on highlighting that the footballer had drunk a lot, although His friend Bruno, the only one who accompanied him that night, highlighted that they maintained a “respectful chemistry.” with the woman.
Dani Alves, one of the most successful footballers in history, played for clubs such as Sevilla and Juventus Turin, in addition to being part of Messi and Guardiola's successful Barça team. When the events occurred he was briefly in Barcelona, after returning from the World Cup in Qatar.
After his entry into prison in January 2023, his team at the time, the Pumas de México, terminated his contract.
Read alsoReport from Barcelona: trial began against former soccer player Dani Alves for sexual assault
#Dani #Alves #denies #rape #young #woman #accuses #free #leave #time
