TAKING THE STAND
Dani Alves’ model ex Joana Sanz says ex-Barcelona star ‘stank of alcohol & collapsed in bed’ moments after ‘rape’
Alves' wife Joana Sanz filed for divorce after the explosive allegations surfaced last year
DANI Alves' ex-wife says he "stank of alcohol and collapsed in bed" after arriving home from a night out where he allegedly raped a woman.
Model Joana Sanz told her ex-husband's rape trial in Barcelona that Alves also rang her "drunk" from the club where he allegedly forced himself on a 23-year-old woman.
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The Brazilian defender, 40, is accused of raping a woman in the toilet of an upmarket Barcelona nightclub on December 30, 2022.
During the first day of the footballer's trial yesterday, a friend and cousin of his accuser claimed he also groped them in the VIP area, local media .
The two women claim he then invited their friend, the alleged rape victim, to follow him through a separate door after flirting with her.
Alves has admitted to having sex with the alleged victim in the toilet of the club since the allegations surfaced, but insists it was consensual.
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Spanish prosecutors say they want the defender - who has been in pre-trial detention for over a year - jailed for nine years if he is convicted.
And the lawyer representing the dad-of-two's accuser has called for him to face the maximum 12-year prison sentence if he is found guilty.
Both prosecutors are also seeking a compensation payment of £128,000.
Under Spanish law excess alcohol consumption can serve to reduce a prison sentence in the case of a guilty verdict.
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Sanz was a witness requested by Alves' defence team.
Sanz, who was married to Alves for almost seven years, filed for divorce last year after the explosive accusations surfaced.
The Tenerife-born beauty claimed he complicated things by contesting her attempts to end their marriage.
And a Spanish TV programme went on to claim the brunette had been asked to leave his home in Barcelona after refusing to sign a confidentiality agreement.
But confirmation of their separation came at the end of April last year after the footballer changed his version of events and it is believed the pair are in the midst of divorce proceedings.
Her testimony in court today marked an extraordinary turnaround in the relationship between the high-profile pair.
She took the stand for 10 minutes, telling the court she was not legally divorced from the footballer and said she was at their Barcelona house on the night in question.
Sanz told the court Alves "smelled of alcohol" and "he bumped into several pieces of furniture and collapsed on the bed" after arriving home from the night out.
Timeline of Dani Alves's case
December 30, 2022: A woman alleges she was sexually assaulted in the toilets of Sutton nightclub
January 1, 2023: Cops in Barcelona are investigating an alleged sexual assault in a nightclub involving Dani Alves.
January 5, 2023: Dani Alves's alleged victim makes a formal complaint claiming she was sexually assaulted
CCTV footage shows Alves had been alone for 47 seconds in a toilet at the nightclub with his accuser
January 20, 2023: Alves had been remanded in custody by a judge in Barcelona
He initially denies ever meeting his accuser but later confirms they had sex in the nightclub's toilets - but insists was consensual
January 31, 2023: His wife Joana Sanz, 29, demands divorce
February 8, 2023: It emerges that Alves is said to be receiving 'VIP treatment' in prison
March 17, 2023: Alves is going on hunger strike following split from wife
November 14, 2023: The footballer is ordered to stand trial for the alleged assault
November 24, 2023: Prosecutors demand nine years jail time and to pay the alleged victim £130,000, if found guilty
February 5, 2024: Alves appears in court in Spain facing twelve years in jail
February 6 2024: Joana Sanz testified in court about a "drunk" phone call her husband made to her after the alleged assault
But she said she didn't want to talk to him because of "the state he was in".
Alves initially claimed he had never met his female accuser before telling a judge in a court hearing he had lied to cover up his “marital infidelity.”
His court case at Barcelona’s Audiencia Provincial Court reached a second day on Tuesday.
The three judges, who are sitting without a jury as is normal in Spain for sex crime cases, have around a fortnight to announce a verdict once the trial ends.
Alves' rape accuser has been given permission to testify behind closed doors during the case - but according to G1 gave testimony in the same room as Alves yesterday.
Some 20 witnesses took the stand on Tuesday as evidence was heard relating to Alves' state of inebriation and the victim's distress after the alleged assault.
The footballer was present in court wearing a grey jumper, dark trousers and trainers.
Handcuffed to a police officer, he sat silently in the front row.
Alves' Brazilian friend Bruno, who went to the club with the footballer, told the court he had drunk a lot of alcohol in various bars in the hours before they went to the nightclub.
On entering, the court heard they invited the three young women to join their table in the VIP area, where Alves demonstrated what "a respectful chemistry" towards the alleged victim.
He said he saw Alves going off to the bathroom in the VIP area and the young woman following him.
After coming out of the toilets, Alves "continued dancing" and did not speak with his friend about what had happened.
Alves will have the option to take the stand on the last day.
This week's trial is the first time the former defender has appeared publicly since his arrest in January last year.
He was sacked by Mexican side UNAM Pumas following his arrest in Barcelona at the start of last year after he flew back to the Catalan capital to attend his mother-in-law’s funeral.
His wife shared a post on Instagram in March 2023 that read: “I think it’s going to take me years to erase from my memory his way of looking at me.”
Alves responded with a grovelling letter which was later leaked to a Spanish TV station.
The note, addressed to "My Dear Joana" and written in Spanish, said: "In these difficult moments, I regret your decision and I hope that life gives us another chance to love you again.
“I understand the pain the unjust situation we are experiencing is causing and I understand that you have not been able to withstand all that pressure.
“The facts of which I am accused are foreign to me and to the values that have guided my life: love, respect and effort.
“I will continue fighting as I have always done, believing in myself with the support and confidence of those who know who I really am.”
He also delivered a desperate pre-trial apology to the model for “cheating on her”, and said in an interview from his cell: “The only person I have to ask for forgiveness is my wife, Joana Sanz."
As well as two spells at Barcelona, Alves has played for Seville, Juventus, Paris Saint-Germain and Sao Paulo.
He is widely considered one of the greatest full-backs of all time and became the oldest player to represent Brazil at the World Cup in December 2022 in Qatar.
The former football star has made repeated bail requests - which have all been rejected.
Judges have said his alleged victim’s version of events is coherent and whereas Alves had changed his story several times as the evidence authorities have against him has emerged.
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At the start of the year his mum Lucia Alves caused controversy and left herself open to future prosecution by naming and picturing her son’s rape accuser in a social media post she has now removed.
She was seen at court this week with Alves' two brothers but made no comment.
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