Brazil international Robinho has been found guilty of taking part in a gang rape of a woman whilst he was still playing for AC Milan in 2013. The 33-year-old alongside five other Brazilians have been sentenced to nine years in jail after they assaulted an Albanian woman under the influence of alcohol in a nightclub. Robinho, who has exactly 100 caps for his national side, did not appear in court for the ruling, but he has pleaded his innocence via his lawyer. As a result, the sentence is likely to be put on hold until the process of the appeal is finalised.
Meanwhile, a post on Robinho’s Instagram page said that he had already defended himself and all actions are being taken to resolve the situation, the statement read: “On the news involving the forward Robinho, relating to events of a few years ago, we would like to clarify that he already defended himself from the accusations, saying he had no involvement with the episode.”
Despite the sentence, Atletico Mineiro Oswaldo di Oliviera played Robinho during the visit to Corinthians after he gave his full backing towards the Brazilian, who he regards as a ‘family man’. Robinho started his initial career at Santos before heading to Real Madrid in 2005.
The Brazilian forward sealed a British-record move to Manchester City three years later, but he would only last for two seasons before making the switch to AC Milan. The forward has since plyed his trade for former side Santos as well as with Chinese club Guangzhou Evergrande, and he is now in the ranks of Mineiro, where he is a fan favourite. The veteran has scored 38 times in over 100 appearances for Mineiro, and he will hope to extend his tally further, should he be cleared out of the rape case.