Alves found guilty of nightclub rape, bags prison sentence

Former Brazil footballer Dani Alves has been sentenced to four and half years in prison after he was found guilty of rape in Spain.

Alves was first arrested in January 2023 and has been in pre-trial detention ever since.

The 40-year-old former Barcelona star had denied sexually assaulting the woman in the early hours of 31 December 2022.

As well as handing Alves a four-and-a-half year sentence, the court said he should face a further five years’ probation.

Read Also: Assault: Spanish court rejects bail request for Dani Alves

In a statement, the court said there was evidence other than the victim’s testimony that proved that she had been raped.

Alves has been held in pre-trial detention since January 2023 and has changed his testimony on a number of occasions.

He first denied knowing his accuser only to claim later that he had met her in the toilet but that nothing had happened between them.

He then changed his version of events again, saying that they had had consensual sex. “We were both enjoying ourselves,” he alleged.

Alves played more than 400 times for Barcelona, winning six league titles and three Champions Leagues across two spells with the club. He was also part of Brazil’s 2022 World Cup squad.

Join the conversation

Opinions

Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism

Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.

As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.

If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.

Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.

Donate Now