Dani Alves received a huge boost on Wednesday to his chances of getting a temporary release from custody. After his arrest in January 2023 on sexual assault accusations, he finally got bail.
Due to his financial difficulties, Alves is unable to post the $1.1 million bond required for his release. This prompted him to seek financial support from Neymar‘s father, who had previously helped him pay restitution to the victim.
In the meanwhile, Alves waits in prison for word on his sexual assault conviction appeal. The former player was found guilty of assaulting a minor at a Barcelona nightclub in December 2022. He was jailed the next February.
While the case was underway, authorities seized his bank accounts, making it difficult for him to pay the bond sum. Rumor has it that Neymar Sr. stepped in to assist. Thus, there is a history of links between Neymar’s father and Alves’ money operations; for example, he helped collect $162,000 for the victim in one of Alves’ cases.
The court had imposed a strict deadline of 2:30 pm local time for posting bail. However, Alves didn’t acquire the necessary funds, thereby delaying Alves’ release. It seemed like Neymar’s dad would chip in to get the ex-player out of jail quickly.
But now that Alves is guilty, they have chosen to stop supporting him. “As everyone knows, at first, I helped Dani Alves, without any link with any lawsuit.
“In this second moment, in a different situation from the previous one, in which the Spanish Courts have already decided for the conviction, they are speculating and trying to associate my name and my son’s with a matter that is no longer up to us today.
“I hope Daniel finds with his own family all the answers he is looking for. For us, for my family, the matter is over”, he wrote on Instagram.
Since the court considered Alves a flight risk, they had dismissed his previous petitions for bail. After serving 25% of his term in pre-trial incarceration after his arrest in January 2023, the veteran’s attorneys asked for the release of the disgraced fullback.
But to prevent Alves from potentially escaping to Brazil, his lawyer Ines Guardiola had already gathered his passports—one each from Spain and Brazil—to present to the court.
Interestingly, he may be able to find sanctuary in this nation as it does not have an extradition treaty with Spain. In the middle of all this, a schism among the Barcelona High Court justices became apparent. Judge Luis Balesta opposed Alves’ interim release, casting a dissenting vote against the majority.
Balesta requested that Alves serve half of the original sentence—2 years and 3 months—in jail. Marca says that he worries about Alves’ financial capacity and since Spain and Brazil do not have an extradition system.
PHOTOS: IMAGO
