Spain’s public prosecutors said on Wednesday that they are filing an appeal with the Supreme Court against the overturning of the rape conviction of the former Brazil and Barcelona footballer Dani Alves (main image), describing the decision as ‘irrational’ and accusing the appeals court of effectively putting the accuser on trial by questioning her credibility.
Alves was handed a four-and-a-half-year prison sentence in February last year after being convicted of raping a young woman in the VIP bathroom of a Barcelona nightclub on 31 December 2022.
However, that ruling was overturned on 28 March by a Barcelona appeals court, sparking backlash from feminist groups and members of Spain’s left-leaning government. ALSO READ: Spanish appeals court overturns ex-Barça star Dani Alves’ rape conviction.
The appeals court had cited inconsistencies and contradictions in the trial and determined that the evidence was not sufficient to conclusively prove Alves’ guilt. Throughout the proceedings, Alves had insisted the encounter was consensual.
In a written appeal, the public prosecutor’s office sharply criticised what it called a ‘thoughtless and irrational assessment’ of parts of the evidence by the appeals court. ALSO READ: Public prosecutors in Barcelona to appeal ruling that overturned Alves’ rape conviction.
The prosecutor is now calling for Alves to be sentenced to nine years in prison or for his case to be reviewed by other judges in Catalonia’s High Court.
The prosecutors argued that the court’s conclusions were ‘completely wrong and irrational, even arbitrary’, particularly in regard to how the judges interpreted discrepancies between the woman’s testimony and her behaviour seen on surveillance footage.
‘It would appear to recover the medieval assumption of “the woman who agrees to get drunk with a man consents to everything” – but that is not the case, she only agrees to get drunk,’ they wrote.
They further described the circumstances as ‘cruel’ for the young woman, who they said was ‘morally convicted and made untrustworthy’.
Alves had been in custody from his arrest in January 2023 until March 2024, when he was released after posting bail of one million euros while awaiting the outcome of his appeal.
The former defender was a key figure in Barcelona’s golden era, winning three Champions League titles and six La Liga championships. He also secured league trophies with both Juventus and Paris Saint-Germain, and earned 126 international caps for Brazil.
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ALSO READ: Spanish government secures its ‘Only Yes is Yes’ sexual consent law.
⚖️ La Fiscalia recorre l’absolució a Dani Alves per agressió sexual en considerar que hi va haver arbitrarietat en la resolució del TSJC.
➕ Notícies a https://t.co/YCp3AoruJW pic.twitter.com/MlkY3etjVp
— RTVE Notícies (@rtvenoticies) May 7, 2025
🔴 ÚLTIMA HORA | La Fiscalía recurre la sentencia que absolvió a Dani Alves porque “recupera el postulado medieval del consentimiento”
Lo cuenta @pedrojimenezg https://t.co/jHtTk0cJq5
— Cadena SER (@La_SER) May 7, 2025
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