Court rules Robinho must serve rape sentence in Brazil

Former Manchester City and Real Madrid striker Robinho has been mandated to serve a nine-year prison sentence in Brazil for his involvement in the gang rape of a young Albanian woman at a Milan nightclub in 2013. The decision, handed down by judges in Brasilia following an Italian court’s request, marks a significant development in a case that has been ruined by controversy and conflicting narratives.

Robinho, whose real name is Robson de Souza, has consistently maintained his innocence, claiming that the encounter was consensual. In a statement to the Brazilian network TV Record, he asserted, “I never denied it. I could have denied it because my DNA was not there, but I’m not a liar.” Despite his protests, the Italian justice system found him guilty in 2017 a verdict that was upheld by Italy’s highest court in 2022.

The 40-year-old Robinho was sentenced in Italy to nine years in prison for his part in a group sexual assault in 2013 when he played for AC Milan. The Superior Court of Justice in Brazil voted 9-2 to validate the Italian court’s conviction, signaling that Robinho must face the consequences of his actions. Robinho’s lawyer José Eduardo Rangel de Alckim said he will appeal the decision to Brazil’s Supreme Court and he will ask for the player to stay out of prison during the appeal process.

“Robinho is available and willing to appear anytime before the judges. If an officer gets there, he will comply. He will not oppose,” Alckim said. “Our first concern is to suspend the immediate arrest order. We will ask for the sentence to be executed after the appeal decision has been made.”

The case has not only raised questions about the handling of sexual assault allegations in the realm of professional sports but has also sparked broader discussions about racism and accountability. Robinho, in his defense, accused the Italian justice system of racism, pointing to a perceived bias in his treatment. He lamented the prevalence of racism during his time in Italy and criticized the lack of action against such discrimination.

Robinho’s case and that of former Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain defender Dani Alves have sparked criticism over the failure of football authorities in Brazil to condemn violence against women.

In February, former Brazil international full-back Alves was sentenced to four-and-a-half years in prison for raping a woman in a nightclub in Barcelona. On Wednesday, a court in Spain ruled he would be released from jail pending an appeal in a one-million-euro bail agreement denounced by the victim’s lawyer as “justice for the rich.”I hope that here in Brazil I can have the voice that I didn’t have there,” Robinho, who has protested his innocence, said in an interview with Brazilian network TV Record on Sunday.