Former footballer Dani Alves will begin the second day of his trial today, as he defends himself against an alleged charge of rape, following an incident that occurred on December 30, 2022 in a nightclub in Barcelona. The 40-year-old has been in prison for the past 12 months after being handed over, although he has so far maintained his innocence.
On Monday, the court heard the testimony of the victim – a closed testimony with the 23-year-old's distorted voice and blurred image – and those of her friends who were with her on the night in question, and the employees of the discotheque One of the friends stated, based on what the victim told him, that Alves threw the victim on the floor of the bathroom where the incident occurred, telling her “you're my whore,” between a series of more explicit details.
The mother of Alves was also present at the trial, and had hoped to cross the road with her son, but she had to sign a heart of love to Alves, to which he responded with a smile. After Lucia Alves was removed at the request of Dani, who asked the court that none of his family members be present for the rest of the trial. Alves will have to testify on Wednesday, he said AS Diary.
At the beginning of the process, Alves' lawyers asked for the case to be thrown out, asserting that the media report had obscured his right to a fair trial in his characterization of Alves, while also asserting that the fact that there was no blood test performed on Alves to determine the amount of alcohol in his system. This could be a mitigating factor to secure a reduced sentence. Both petitions were dismissed by the judge.
If Alves is found guilty of rape, he faces a prison sentence of between 9 and 12 years, as well as damages of €150,000 for the victim.
