A judge confirmed, this Wednesday (8), that the former president of the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF), Luis Rubiales, will be tried for the crimes of sexual assault and coercion, in the case of the forced kiss he gave to player Jenni Beautiful.
“The National Audience judge, Francisco de Jorge, agreed to open an oral trial” against Rubiales, at a later date yet to be defined, the court said in a statement.
Rubiales will sit in the dock “for the non-consensual kiss of Spanish national team player Jennifer Hermoso, after the World Cup final held in Sydney (Australia), on August 20, and for the subsequent coercion to force her to demonstrate public statement stating that he had consented”, details the text.
The Public Ministry requests 2.5 years in prison for Rubiales, in addition to two more years of supervised release after serving the prison sentence, a ban on communicating or approaching Hermoso for four years and compensation of 50 thousand euros (R$ 273 thousand ) to the athlete.
Judge De Jorge asked Rubiales to pay bail of 65 thousand euros (R$355 thousand) within 24 hours.
The judge also confirmed that the former coach of the women’s team, Jorge Vilda, and two other former Federation officials, Albert Luque and Rubén Rivera, accused of coercion against Hermoso, will also be tried. The Public Ministry requests one year and six months in prison for the three.
On August 20, Rubiales kissed striker Jenni Hermoso on the mouth in front of cameras around the world, just minutes after the Spanish team’s victory in Sydney in the women’s World Cup final.
The episode caused a wave of outrage in Spain and abroad, and Rubiales ended up resigning as president of the RFEF the following month.
Since the recent reform of the Spanish Penal Code, a non-consensual kiss can be considered sexual assault, a criminal category that groups all types of sexual violence.
Source: Gazetaesportiva
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