Brazilian soccer star Dani Alves, formerly with FC Barcelona, among others, remains in custody. A second request for his release was rejected by Catalonia’s Supreme Court on Tuesday.
The professional, who has been 40 since Saturday, is said to have sexually abused a woman in the toilet of a nightclub in Barcelona at the end of December.
The reason for this is the “high risk of flight” of the Brazilian, who also has the Spanish passport. This assessment is based on the “heavy evidence” against Alves, as well as his “enormous financial resources, which could enable him to leave Spain at any time”.
Ex-Barca star faces high penalty
The high penalty that could be imposed if found guilty is also a factor. The defense had already applied for a release on April 20, but to no avail. Three days earlier, Alves had admitted for the first time that he had had a sexual relationship with the plaintiff, but that it was consensual.
At the recent hearing, he even presented video evidence that should enable a comparison of the versions, as the news agency “AFP” reports.
Alves, whose contract with Mexican club Pumas UNAM was terminated after his imprisonment, remains in the Brians prison complex, some 40 kilometers north-west of Barcelona. In December he played for Brazil at the World Cup in Qatar.