The sexual assault trial of Barcelona and Brazil soccer star Dani Alves began Monday in Spain.
A 23-year-old woman who said Alves raped her on Dec. 31, 2022, testified behind closed doors to protect her identity. Two friends who were with her that night testified as well.
Alves, 40, has consistently claimed that he is not guilty. He has changed his story about the night multiple times.
The woman told police last year that she and her friends encountered Alves at a Barcelona nightclub. She said that after a brief interaction, Alves took her into a bathroom, groped her and then raped her.
In court on Monday, the friends said Alves and the woman were in the bathroom for about 15 minutes. Alves left first, and then the woman walked out and appeared “devastated,” one friend testified, according to Reuters.
“She said she needed to go. We left to get our coats from the concierge and before getting there my cousin told me [Alves] had hurt her a lot and had ejaculated inside of her,” the witness said.
When the allegations first became public, Alves claimed he had never seen the woman before. Once he was arrested, he admitted to meeting her but denied they had any sexual contact. Three months later, he admitted to having sex but claimed it was consensual. Alves said he lied initially in a desperate attempt to save his marriage.
Spanish prosecutors are seeking a 9-year prison sentence for Alves if he is convicted. He has already spent a year behind bars at a prison outside Barcelona after a judge deemed he was a flight risk.
Alves’ native Brazil does not extradite its own citizens. Another Brazilian soccer star, Robinho, was part of a 2013 gang rape of a woman in a Milan nightclub, according to authorities. He was convicted in 2017, but he has remained in his home country and never seen an Italian prison.
Alves was a global superstar with Barcelona from 2008 to 2016, winning numerous trophies with the club and his teammate, Lionel Messi. At the time of his arrest, he was playing for the Mexican club Pumas, which terminated his contract in response.
With News Wire Services
