A Brazilian court has upheld an Italian court’s rape conviction for former Milan and Brazil striker Robinho, ruling that the ex-football star must serve his nine-year prison sentence in Brazil.
The decision, rendered by Brazil’s superior court of justice (STJ), represents a majority consensus affirming the validity of Italy’s ruling within Brazilian jurisdiction.
In 2017, a Milan court found Robinho and five other Brazilians guilty of sexually assaulting a woman in 2013 after intoxicating her with alcohol in a nightclub. This verdict was subsequently upheld by an appeals court in 2020 and endorsed by Italy’s Supreme Court in 2022.
Robinho, aged 40, whose full name is Robson de Souza, currently resides in Brazil and has consistently refuted the allegations.
Given Brazil’s customary policy against extraditing its citizens, Italy sought last year for Robinho to serve his sentence in his native country.
Following the trial, Robinho’s lawyer, José Eduardo Alckmin, announced that Robinho would comply with authorities upon formal notification of the decision.
The Brazilian court’s proceedings did not delve into reassessing the specifics of the rape conviction, focusing solely on determining the enforceability of the Italian sentence in Brazil.
However, in an interview aired on a local TV station last Sunday, Robinho expressed hope that the court would scrutinize the merits of the Italian case, asserting, “I was unfairly convicted in Italy for something that did not occur.”
