By South China Morning Post | Created at 2025-03-28 12:06:38 | Updated at 2025-03-31 08:06:55
2 days ago
A Spanish appeal court overturned on Friday former Brazil international footballer Dani Alves’ rape conviction, arguing his trial was marked by “shortcomings” and “inaccuracies”.
Alves was sentenced to 4½ years in jail in February last year for raping a young woman in the VIP bathroom of a Barcelona nightclub on December 31, 2022.
The 41-year-old, who won the Champions League three times with Barcelona, was released from jail last March pending his appeal after he posted the €1 million (US$1.1 million) bail set by the court.
The appeal court said its four judges had “unanimously” accepted the player’s appeal and “annulled” his conviction.
The court also rejected the appeal filed by public prosecutors, who were seeking a more severe jail term of nine years.
Alves’ trial contained “a series of gaps, inaccuracies, inconsistencies, and contradictions regarding the facts, the legal assessment, and its consequences”, the court said in its ruling.
