Brazil's Dani Alves gets 4-1/2 years for rape in Spain, will appeal
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00:00 One of the most decorated footballers in history found guilty of rape.
00:05 Dani Alves has been sentenced to four and a half years in prison after a court in Spain
00:09 found him guilty of raping a woman in a Barcelona nightclub on the 31st of December 2022.
00:16 "We're satisfied because the verdict recognises what we've always said, that the victim was
00:24 saying what she suffered had taken place. We're satisfied and happy for her and all
00:30 women."
00:31 The 40-year-old was also ordered to pay 150,000 euros in compensation to the victim and will
00:37 face five years of probation.
00:39 The Brazilian had been accused of luring the woman to a bathroom in the VIP section of
00:43 this nightclub.
00:45 Alves first denied knowing his accuser, before later claiming he met her in the toilet but
00:49 nothing happened between them.
00:51 He then changed his version of events again, claiming they had consensual sex and denying
00:56 hitting the victim and grabbing her hair.
00:58 A 23-year-old said she begged Alves to let her go.
01:02 In a statement, the court said there was evidence other than the victim's testimony proving
01:06 that she had been raped.
01:08 Alves' lawyer said she will appeal the verdict.
01:11 Both state prosecutors and lawyers representing the victim had asked for a longer sentence.
01:17 During his glittering career with spells at Barcelona, PSG and Juventus, the former fullback
01:22 won league titles in Spain, France and Italy, as well as three Champions League trophies.
01:27 His trial comes after Spain recently passed a landmark law aiming to toughen penalties
01:32 for sexual crimes and making consent the key factor in determining assault cases.