A Spanish court has ruled that Dani Alves, a former Barcelona and Brazil footballer, may be allowed conditional release from prison after completing almost a quarter of his rape sentence.
Alves, who was sentenced to four and a half years in prison last month, will be released on bail of €1 million (£853,000).
He’s been in pretrial detention since January 2023. The 40-year-old was found guilty of raping a lady in a Barcelona nightclub in December 2022.
His release conditions include relinquishing both his Brazilian and Spanish passports to prevent him from leaving Spain.
He is also required to appear in court weekly. Furthermore, a restraining order has been issued, preventing him from approaching the victim.
The court’s ruling reached in response to a request from Alves’ lawyer citing his time spent in pre-trial incarceration, was not unanimous, with one judge dissenting. The decision is susceptible to appeal.
During last month’s trial, prosecutors said that Alves and his companion bought champagne for three young women. Alves allegedly persuaded one of them, unbeknownst to her, into a VIP area of the nightclub under false pretences.
Prosecutors claimed that at this point, Alves turned violent, forcing the victim into sexual intercourse despite her repeated requests to leave.
Alves claimed that she could have fled “if she wanted to,” but the court found that she did not agree.
Recent modifications to Spanish law have emphasised the importance of consent under the “Only Yes is Yes” philosophy.
The court stated that corroborating evidence outside the victim’s testimony supported the allegation of rape.
According to the court, Alves aggressively grabbed and threw the complainant to the ground before sexually assaulting her, effectively limiting her movement even as “the complainant expressed refusal and attempted to depart.”
The victim described the encounter as giving her “anguish and terror,” and one of her companions testified that she saw the 23-year-old sobbing excessively after leaving the lavatory.
Alves changed his evidence numerous times, originally denying any acquaintance with his accuser before subsequently claiming that they met in the lavatory, even though nothing happened between them.
He subsequently modified his version of events, claiming that they had consenting intercourse. “We were both enjoying ourselves,” he claimed.
Alves has made over 400 games for Barcelona, winning six league titles and three Champions Leagues during his two tenure there. He also represented Brazil in the 2022 World Cup.
His trophy cabinet includes awards from his time at Sevilla, Juventus, and PSG, cementing his position as one of Brazil’s most seasoned internationals, with 126 caps for his country.