Former Barcelona defender Dani Alves has been convicted of sexually assaulting a woman in a nightclub in 2022, as confirmed by Catalonia’s top court on Thursday.
The court handed down a sentence of four and a half years in prison and ordered Alves to pay €150,000 to the victim.
In its statement, the court emphasized that the evidence, along with the plaintiff’s testimony, supported the conclusion that the victim did not consent, thus establishing the occurrence of rape.
“The sentence considers that it has been proven that the victim did not consent and that there is evidence, in addition to the testimony of the plaintiff, to consider the rape proven,” the court said in a statement.
Despite Alves insisting that the sexual encounter was consensual, the court deemed otherwise.
The 40-year-old football star was initially arrested in January 2023, following the incident that took place in the early hours of December 31, 2022.
In response to the verdict, Alves’s legal team stated their intention to appeal the sentence.
