Justice: unable to pay his bail, Dani Alves remains behind bars

Brazilian footballer Dani Alves will remain in prison until at least Monday after failing to raise the money needed to pay the one million euro bail required for his release after the weekend. his conviction for rape.

Since Wednesday and the announcement of the decision of the Barcelona court which accepted the principle of this release, the player's defense has not managed to deposit the money before 2:00 p.m. (1:00 p.m. GMT), the daily deadline for this type of steps, judicial sources told AFP. In a race against time to raise this sum, his lawyer even went so far as to ask for an extension of one hour, until 3 p.m., but that was not enough. The footballer, sentenced to four and a half years in prison for rape, will have to remain behind bars until Monday, when the judicial service responsible for the subject will reopen after the weekend.

Dani Alves has been in Brians 2 prison, 40 kilometers northwest of Barcelona, ​​for 14 months. Despite his brilliant career in football, including FC Barcelona, ​​Juventus and Paris SG, Dani Alves seems not to have the funds to pay his bail: the player is waiting to receive significant reimbursements from the Spanish public treasury after having had several tax disputes.

Also read: Accusation, defense, conviction... Five questions on the Dani Alves affair which is shaking Spain

Neymar's father denied Thursday that he would cover the payment of this bail, he who had provided financial assistance to Dani Alves after his arrest. The footballer's financial situation has deteriorated considerably since his arrest in January 2023, including the suspension of his contract with the Mexican club Pumas and the cessation of other sources of income, explains his defense.

For the prosecution and the civil parties, who opposed this release, Alves' economic power is still significant, and they believe that there remains a risk of flight. The magistrates considered in their decision that this danger was “reduced” after his conviction in first instance but recognized that the real economic situation of Alves was unknown, even if one could assume a “broad economic solvency”.

In addition to the payment of this bail of one million euros, the court had set as conditions for his release from prison the confiscation of his two Spanish and Brazilian passports, the obligation to report to court every week, the ban on leaving Spain, as well as the ban on approaching the victim and communicating with them.

Alves was sentenced on February 22 to four and a half years of imprisonment for the rape of a young woman on the night of December 30 to 31, 2022 in a nightclub in Barcelona, ​​a sentence much lower than the requisitions of the prosecution, which called for nine years in prison. All parties have announced they will appeal.