Four Velez players are accused of sexual abuse – 03/07/2024 – Sport

Four players from Vélez Sarsfield, from Argentina, were accused of sexual abuse by a 24-year-old journalist, the country’s press outlets reported this Thursday (7). According to the woman’s complaint, the accused are Sebastián Sosa, Brian Cufre, Abiel Osorio and José Ignacio Florentín, and the crime allegedly took place in a hotel room in Tucumán. The athletes were removed by the club.

The players have not yet publicly spoken out about the accusations.

According to the Clarín newspaper, the young woman said that she was invited by Sosa to meet him at the hotel after the match in which Vélez drew with Atlético Tucumán in the Argentine League Cup. Upon arriving at the location, she was surprised by the presence of the other three players.

Still according to her report, the meeting went on normally, everyone drank alcoholic beverages, until she felt bad. It was at that moment that the players allegedly sexually abused her.

The journalist’s name was not disclosed to protect her identity. Clarín also reports that after the complaint, the Prosecutor’s Office for Abuses against Sexual Integrity ordered the victim to undergo rigorous examinations, the seizure of her clothes, in addition to requesting records from the hotel’s security cameras.

In a statement, Vélez informed the players of their departure and said they would cooperate with the courts. “The board immediately made itself available to the Tucumán Court to provide all relevant information and elements to be able to contribute to the investigation and clarification of the case and determine the corresponding responsibilities,” the club said in a statement.

“Furthermore, within the scope of the institution’s action protocol in cases of gender-based violence, it is hereby informed that it was decided to remove from the squad, in a preventive manner, the players mentioned in the complaint,” added the statement.

The complaint comes at a time when world football has been shaken by cases of sexual abuse involving players. Last month, Brazilian Daniel Alves was sentenced to four years and six months in prison for raping a young woman, then aged 23, in the bathroom of a nightclub in Barcelona, ​​on December 30, 2022.

Convicted of gang rape in Italy, former player Robinho received a nine-year prison sentence from the Italian courts, but is free in Brazil, whose legislation prevents the extradition of native Brazilians.

The former athlete, however, is awaiting a trial at the STJ (Superior Court of Justice) which could determine that he serves his sentence in Brazil. The trial is scheduled for the 20th at the Special Court of the STJ.