Brazilian footballer Robinho, a former international player, has been apprehended to commence a nine-year prison term for sexual assault.
Convicted in Italy two years prior for his involvement in the assault of an Albanian woman at a Milan nightclub in 2013, Robinho, aged 40, was detained at his residence in Santos, Brazil.
Upon Italy’s unsuccessful attempts to extradite him, the Brazilian authorities were approached to enforce the sentence in his home country. The Brazilian court confirmed this decision, additionally ruling that his sentence be served in prison rather than under house arrest.
Despite attempts to halt his detention, a Supreme Court judge dismissed the plea on Thursday. This proactive measure by Brazil’s justice system has garnered praise from local media, amid concerns that Robinho’s fame and wealth might have facilitated an evasion of justice.
The former Brazilian international, boasting 100 caps for his country, was representing AC Milan when the incident occurred. Following an unsuccessful appeal in 2020 and the subsequent affirmation of his sentence by Italy’s highest court in 2022, an international arrest warrant was issued by Italian prosecutors.
Robinho, who had a stint with Manchester City lasting two years, asserted to a Brazilian network on Sunday that the encounter was consensual.
