Spanish prosecutors have requested nine years in prison for Brazilian footballer Dani Alves, accused of rape by a young woman in a Barcelona nightclub. The prosecution is also demanding compensation from the complainant in the amount of 150,000 euros and “the ban (for Alves) from approaching” her, according to the indictment consulted Thursday by AFP.
Alves, a former player for Barça and PSG in particular, has been in pre-trial detention since January, in a prison near Barcelona. Charged with sexual assault, a criminal category including rape in Spain, he must be tried in this case on a date which has not yet been set.
Discordant versions
Dani Alves is accused by a young woman of having raped her at the end of December in the toilets of a nightclub in Barcelona, a city in the north-east of Spain. The 40-year-old disputes the facts. Spanish justice has repeatedly opposed his release pending trial, in particular due to a “high risk of flight” of the player in Brazil which, like many other countries, does not extradite in generally not its nationals.
Alves had changed his version several times, going so far as to say in a video in early January that he had never met the complainant. He justified himself by saying that he did not want to jeopardize his marriage. One of the most successful footballers in history, he enjoyed the most glorious period of his career at Barça, between 2008 and 2016, where he won 23 trophies.