The Prosecutor's Office of the National Court asks to sentence the former president of the Royal Spanish Football Federation (FEF) Luis Rubiales to two and a half years in prison for the non-consensual kiss and the alleged subsequent coercion of the Spanish women's team player Jennifer Hermoso.
In its indictment, the Public Ministry requests that Rubiales be sentenced to one year in prison for a crime of sexual assault as well as a year and a half for a crime of coercion as the perpetrator.
The Prosecutor's Office also asks the National Court to sentence the current director of the Spanish team, Albert Luque, the former women's coach Jorge Vilda and the head of Marketing of the Federation, to one and a half years in prison for a crime of coercion. Ruben Rivera.
In addition, he proposes that Rubiales compensate the player with 50,000 euros for the kiss and that the former president, along with the rest of the accused, compensate the player with another 50,000 euros for the alleged coercion.
The Public Prosecutor's Office begins its story by setting the day and place in which the events occurred: August 20, 2023 in Sydney (Australia), specifically in the State of New South Wales.
«On the occasion of the presentation of medals to the players of the Spanish women's soccer team after their victory in the World Cup final, and at the time when the player received the protocol greeting and congratulations from the accused Luis Rubiales, president of the RFEF, he held the player's head with both hands, and in a surprising way and without the player's consent or acceptance, he kissed her on the lips,” he points out.
“Harassment”
From that fact, “and faced with the personal and professional consequences that could result, Rubiales, by himself and in connivance with the rest of the accused, began to exert constant and repeated acts of pressure directly on the player and through “his family and friends with the aim of publicly justifying and approving the kiss that he gave her against his will.”
The Prosecutor's Office assures that Hermoso suffered “a situation of harassment that prevented him from developing his life in peace, tranquility and freely.” In this sense, he points out that Vilda, Rivera and Luque Martos “were people trusted by Rubiales”, recalling that they accepted their positions under his mandate as president of the FEF. “Depending, therefore, his privileged situation in the FEF on the fate of its president,” he clarifies.
The letter states that “at a time immediately after the awarding of medals to the National Team players, Rubiales asked Ana Álvarez, director of women's football at the RFEF, to enter the locker room and order Hermoso to leave because she wanted to talk.” with her, Jennifer agreeing to the request.
“At this first moment Rubiales already urged the player to make a public statement about her acceptance of the kiss she received, with which she did not agree and which she had no obligation to make,” explains the Prosecutor's Office.
Shortly after, “when the player was traveling on a bus that was taking the Spanish football delegation on the way to the airport back to Spain, she was forced to get off the bus quickly so that she could sign a press release written by the RFEF communication team.” by order of Rubiales and in which Hermoso had had no intervention and whose content he did not share. Despite that, the letter adds, “it was sent to the media.”
Pressures on the plane
Already on the return flight from Australia to Spain, with a stopover in Doha (Qatar), Rubiales would have addressed the player again “to get her to agree to make a joint public statement between them when they arrived at said stopover, stating that the kiss “It had been consented to, to which the player refused once again, expressing her exhaustion and discomfort to the accused due to the pressure exerted by him.”
«Faced with Hermoso's repeated refusal to agree to his claims, Rubiales, after various conversations with his trusted team, of which Vilda was a part, decided to use another way to achieve what they wanted, consisting of continuing to pressure Hermoso, this time using her relatives who were traveling on the same flight,” the letter continues.
The Prosecutor's Office maintains that the then coach “approached on several occasions the seats where the player's relatives were traveling until he managed to speak with Rafael Hermoso, Jennifer's brother,” trying to “earn his trust by praising the player's sporting virtues.” ».
However, the Prosecutor's Office assures that “the only purpose” was “for Rafael to convince his sister to carry out the public demonstration intended by the accused.” «Given his reluctance to give in to his request, he warned her that if her sister did not agree to participate in the video, this would have negative consequences for her, both personally and in her professional career as a soccer player. “, Add.
Coercion in Ibiza
The writing continues remembering what happened between August 22 and 25, 2023 in Ibiza, on the trip in which the women's team celebrated winning the World Cup. Rivera, head of Marketing at the FEF, “went to said location and insisted, repeatedly and persistently, that Hermoso speak by phone with the head of Integrity.”
«A file had been opened by the integrity committee of the FEF regarding the events that occurred in Sydney, in which it was sought, by order of Rubiales, his exculpation of any responsibility in that area, forcing the statements of those involved to be changed and providing partial expert evidence in their favor,” states the Prosecutor's Office.
However, the player “repeatedly told Rivera that she did not want to agree to his demands and that they leave her alone.” However, he also insisted that he had to participate in the video exonerating Rubiales, “extending the harassment” to the player through a friend of his.
«Despite Hermoso's clear refusal, expressing his exhaustion, Rivera persisted in his behavior, directly with Hermoso and indirectly through Ana Ecube so that he could speak with Albert Luque, which he intended, in agreement with Rubiales, and using of his good personal relationship with the player, bending Jennifer's will,” the indictment states.
However, and not getting what he wanted, Luque went to Ibiza – according to Rubiales – “to get her to participate in the alleged video with his presence, showing up at the hotel where the player and her friend were staying and trying to force Jennifer to talk to him, to which she refused.
“Bad person”
Luque insisted through WhatsApp personally to Hermoso and through his friend that Jennifer talk to him. «Finally, given the resounding refusal received, Luque sent several WhatsApp messages to Jennifer's friend expressing his anger, alluding to the fact that the player, due to her age, had two years left in her career and that if at this moment it helped her “I could surely get him a position in the Federation,” says the Prosecutor's Office.
At that point, Luque would have accused the player of being a “bad person, wishing” her to be “very alone in life and announcing that he would be happy” if that were to happen.
The Public Ministry concludes by pointing out that “the situation of harassment by the accused towards Hermoso ceased when Rubiales was provisionally suspended by FIFA on August 26, 2023.”
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