Dani Alves GUILTY of raping woman in nightclub bathroom with ex-Barcelona star jailed for more than 4 years
EX -Barcelona star Dani Alves has been found guilty of raping a woman in a Barcelona nightclub.
A Spanish court sentenced the footballer to four and a half years behind bars for the assault.
The court also ordered that Alves pay £130,000 (150,000 euros) to the victim and imposed a restraining order from her for nine years.
“The sentence considers that it has been proven that the victim did not consent, and that there is evidence, in addition to the testimony of the plaintiff, to consider the rape proven,” the court said in a statement.
The decision can be appealed.
In a trial held in Barcelona earlier this month, the footballer denied the allegations and said the encounter had been consensual.
The trial, held at Barcelona’s Audiencia Provincial Court lasted three days with the alleged victim, witnesses, and experts testifying.
The Brazilian defender was accused of raping a woman in a Barcelona nightclub on December 30, 2022.
He has previously confirmed he had sex with a woman in the nightclub’s toilet but insisted it was consensual.
Alves has been held in pre-trial detention since his arrest in January 2023.
In a brief statement, the Barcelona court said Wednesday it had “summoned all parties in the Alves case, including the defendant, to appear in court for a so-called “notification procedure”.
His accuser told the prosecution that she had willingly entered the bathroom with him, but that he forced her to stay after she wanted to leave.
She claims that he was aggressive with her, slapping her and insulting her, and then forced her to have sex with him.
During the first day of the footballer’s trial a friend and cousin of his accuser claimed he also groped them in the VIP area.
The two women claim he then invited their friend, the alleged rape victim, to follow him through a separate door after flirting with her.
His ex-wife Joana Sanz told the court Alves Sanz told the court Alves “smelled of alcohol” and “he bumped into several pieces of furniture and collapsed on the bed” after arriving home the night of the alleged assault.
But she said she didn’t want to talk to him because of “the state he was in”.
Alves has made repeated bail requests but they have all been turned down, with judges saying his alleged victim’s version of events was coherent and pointing out Alves had changed his story several times as the evidence authorities have against him has emerged.
In an exclusive interview from his cell in Brians 2 Prison near Barcelona last June with Spanish TV and newspaper reporter Mayka Navarro, he claimed: “The only person I have to ask for forgiveness is my wife, Joana Sanz.”
As well as two spells at Barcelona, Alves has played for Seville, Juventus, Paris Saint-Germain and Sao Paulo.
He is widely considered one of the greatest full-backs of all time and became the oldest player to represent Brazil at the World Cup in December 2022 in Qatar.
Timeline of Dani Alves's case
December 30, 2022: A woman alleges she was sexually assaulted in the toilets of Sutton nightclub
January 1, 2023: Cops in Barcelona are investigating an alleged sexual assault in a nightclub involving Dani Alves.
January 5, 2023: Dani Alves’s alleged victim makes a formal complaint claiming she was sexually assaulted
CCTV footage shows Alves had been alone for 47 seconds in a toilet at the nightclub with his accuser
January 20, 2023: Alves had been remanded in custody by a judge in Barcelona
He initially denies ever meeting his accuser but later confirms they had sex in the nightclub’s toilets – but insists was consensual
January 31, 2023: His wife Joana Sanz, 29, demands divorce
February 8, 2023: It emerges that Alves is said to be receiving ‘VIP treatment’ in prison
March 17, 2023: Alves is going on hunger strike following split from wife
November 14, 2023: The footballer is ordered to stand trial for the alleged assault
November 24, 2023: Prosecutors demand nine years jail time and to pay the alleged victim £130,000, if found guilty
February 5, 2024: Alves appears in court in Spain facing twelve years in jail
February 6 2024: Joana Sanz testified in court about a “drunk” phone call her husband made to her after the alleged assault
February 7 2024: Alves tells a Spanish court the encounter was consensual