Brazil has denied the extradition of former Man City ace Robinho to Italy, where he was sentenced to nine years in prison for gang sexual violence against an Albanian woman in 2013.
The extradition request made by the Italian Ministry of Justice had been made public in early October, about eight months after the confirmation of Robinho’s sentence by the Italian Supreme Court.
After Brazil refused to extradite the former striker – as the Brazilian constitution prohibits the extradition of native Brazilians – Italy may request that he serves his sentence in his home country.
Alexander Gutierres – Robinho’s lawyer in Italy – told Brazilian media that he could not comment on the matter, while the victim’s lawyer said that he was awaiting a decision from the Brazilian judiciary.
Italian politician Jacopo Gnocchi of the Five Star Movement said: “We knew the Brazilian Constitution. Now we hope that the sentence will be executed in Brazil, but without the need to file another lawsuit.”
The crime committed by Robinho took place in Sio Cafe – a well-known nightclub in Milan – in the early hours of 22nd January 2013. The former Brazil captain, now 38, was playing for AC Milan at the time.
Robinho, his friend Ricardo Falco, and four other Brazilians participated in the act of sexual violence against a woman of Albanian origin, according to the complaint filed by the city prosecutor.
The other four Brazilians – friends of Robinho – left Italy during the investigation. They were named in the case file but were not formally accused.
On the night of the crime, the victim had gone with a friend to Sio Cafe to celebrate her 23rd birthday. The crime took place in a backstage dressing room inside the venue.
Robinho – full name Robson de Souza – was heard in wiretapped conservations saying: “The woman was completely drunk.”
When Robinho left Italy to join Santos in 2014, he denied any guilt, claiming that he had had a sexual relationship with the woman but that it had been consensual and without the involvement of the other five men.
But the investigation found traces of Falco’s semen on her clothes.
Robinho and Falco were first convicted in November 2017, with the Milan Court of Appeal upholding Robinho’s nine-year sentence in December 2020.
The judges in that hearing denounced Robinho’s “particular contempt” for the victim, who was “brutally humiliated”.
They also denounced what they considered an attempt to deceive the Italian justice system with a “false and previously agreed version of the facts” with the others involved.
