Court hearing in Barcelona: this is the state of affairs in the Dani Alves case

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The three-day trial in Barcelona ended on Wednesday. The accused Dani Alves (40), the alleged victim, their lawyers and witnesses – all testified this week at the highest provincial court in Barcelona. Things are not looking good for the former FC Barcelona and Brazilian national team star, who has been in custody since his arrest on January 20, 2023, as revealed by the ‘NZZ’ article. The ruling is expected to take place later this month. There is a risk of four to twelve years in prison; the Public Prosecution Service demands nine years.

What happened on the night of the party?

The Brazilian, then still employed by Mexico’s UNAM Pumas, is said to have raped a then 23-year-old woman in a club toilet in the early hours of December 31. Video recordings from the surveillance cameras in the VIP area of ​​the luxury club “Sutton” in Barcelona prove that the two were together in the bathroom for 16 minutes. The security staff then noticed that the young woman was not feeling well and spoke to her. The police are alerted due to suspicions of sexual harassment. The woman’s companion, a friend and her cousin, encouraged her to overcome her fear and testify against the police. Alves left the disco shortly after the incident.

The air is very thin for Alves

The suspect stands out with varying, incoherent statements. Before his arrest, he told Spanish television channel Antena 3 that he did not know the accuser. He then revised his statement and suddenly spoke of consensual sexual intercourse. On Wednesday he repeated this in the dock: “She never said ‘stop’. We both enjoyed it.” Alves appears calm before bursting into tears when asked how he found out about the ad. He explained that he turned himself in and initially only lied about the affair for his wife to keep secret.

His defense is vehemently pointing out that he was under the influence of alcohol – they are hoping for a more lenient sentence if he is convicted. Optimism looks different.

The alleged victim was questioned in a special closed session to protect her identity. The prosecutor describes her statements as “valid, credible and violent”, not least because the vast majority of witness statements support the statements. “If the sex was consensual, why did it take place in this disgusting bathroom and not in the private room with a comfortable couch?” the prosecutor asks in her closing argument.

Source : Blick