Former Brazilian international footballer Robinho has been arrested in Santos, Brazil, to begin serving a nine-year prison sentence for his sexual assault conviction in Italy in 2017.
Robinho, who also spent two years with Manchester City, received a nine-year prison sentence for involvement in a group sexual assault incident in 2013 during his tenure with AC Milan. Due to Brazil’s policy against extraditing its citizens, Italy requested that he serve his sentence within Brazil.
However, the footballer was never arrested, as he left the country before the final sentencing. He also denies any wrongdoing.
Robinho, 40, was taken into custody at his apartment located in his hometown of Santos on Thursday night.
On Wednesday, the decision by Brazil’s Superior Court of Justice was made with a 9-2 vote to uphold the Italian court’s ruling.
Following his conviction in 2017, he had filed an appeal in 2020 which ended up unsuccessful, and in 2022, Italy’s Supreme Court confirmed his sentence.
According to Goal, Robinho, whose full name is Robson de Souza, recently claimed his nine-year prison sentence is a result of racism in Italy.
Robinho reportedly told Record TV: “I was convicted in Italy unjustly for something that did not happen and I have all the evidence to show that. I played four years in Italy and I got tired of seeing stories of racism. Unfortunately, it happens today. That happened in 2013 and today we are in 2024, which leads me to believe that the same people who do nothing against racism are the same ones who they condemned at my trial.
“If my trial were for a white person, it would be totally different, without a doubt.”
