Dani Alves’ ex-wife has shared a selfie on social media, moments after the former Barcelona full-back was sentenced to four years and six months in prison.
On Thursday, the former Brazil international was found guilty of sexually assaulting a woman in the bathroom of a chic Barcelona nightclub in the early hours of December 31, 2022.
The 40-year-old father-of-two has been in pre-trial detention at Brians 2 prison near the Catalan capital since his arrest in January last year and now faces his first night behind bars as a convicted sex offender.
Despite the tragic news for the ex-Barça star, his ex-wife Joana Sanz has taken the opportunity to share a selfie with followers on her Instagram.
Moments after Alves’ sentencing, Sanz took to social media to share a photo of herself, before also posting a photo that appeared to show her going for a coffee.
Dani Alves’ ex-wife Joana Sanz shared a selfie on social media moments after the ex-Barcelona full-back was sentenced to four years and six months in prison
Former Barcelona defender Dani Alves has been sentenced to four years and six months in prison after being found guilty of rape
He has admitted cheating on his ex-wife, Joana Sanz (pictured), but insists he had consensual sex with his accuser
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Alves protested his innocence on February 7 after taking the stand on the last day of his three-day trial at the provincial court of Audiencia in Barcelona.
He admitted having sex in a toilet at Barcelona’s swanky Sutton nightclub with his 23-year-old female accuser in the early hours of December 31, 2022, but insisted it was consensual.
The woman he was found guilty of raping today confirmed that Alves forced himself on her when she gave her testimony in court behind her screen.
A friend who was with her the night of the rape broke down in tears as she recalled the victim “crying uncontrollably” after leaving the small bathroom where the incident took place.
State prosecutors had sought a nine-year prison sentence if Alves was convicted, and a private prosecutor acting on behalf of the victim sought a 12-year prison sentence at his trial.
In June 2023, Alves admitted to cheating on his wife but insisted he was innocent.
Speak with La Vanguardia After being released from prison last summer, Alves apologized to his former partner. “The only person I have to apologize to is my wife, Joana Sanz,” he said.
‘The woman I married eight years ago, who I am still married to, and who I hope to live with all my life.
Sanz appeared to confirm they had split, with Alves admitting she ‘made a mistake with me’
In a letter, Sanz wrote: ‘It will take years to erase from my memory the way he looked at me’
“I have already apologized to her personally here in prison, but I have to do it publicly because the story is public, the offense is public and she deserves a public apology.
“These are, are and will be very difficult days for her. I thank her for everything she does for me. Her role is not an easy one. I love her and during this time in prison I have thought a lot about our marriage.
‘I am sure that it was not wrong to choose Joana as my wife. Although she may have made a mistake with me.”
His wife appeared to confirm in a social media post that she had divorced Alves.
In a handwritten letter, she said “it will take years to erase the way he viewed me from my memory” and “here is a strong woman moving on to the next phase of her life.”
Alves, who became the oldest player to represent Brazil at the December 2022 World Cup in Qatar, went on trial last November.
Prosecutors had pushed for a 12-year prison sentence for the 40-year-old Brazilian after he was convicted in 2022 of raping a woman in a Spanish nightclub.
Dani Alves’ family leaves court during the trial earlier this month – including ex-wife Joana Sanz (center left) and mother Lucia (center right)
It was initially reported that he was accused of putting his hands down a woman’s underwear in a toilet in the VIP area of Sutton nightclub, before it emerged that his victim said she had been raped.
He was fired by Mexican side UNAM Pumas following his arrest early last year in Barcelona after flying back to the Catalan capital to attend his mother-in-law’s funeral.
He filed repeated bail applications after being in jail, but all were rejected. Judges said his victim’s version of events was coherent and pointed out that Alves had changed his story several times as evidence authorities came forward against him.
Alves claimed before his arrest that he never met his female accuser, but eventually returned after his arrest.