The pretrial detention of former Brazilian football star Ronaldinho, arrested in Paraguay, was confirmed on Saturday by a judge from Asuncion. The 2005 Ballon d'Or spent last night in detention with his brother Roberto.
The two men, suspected of having used false passports, were presented in the morning to a judge who decided late in the afternoon that they remained in prison. "They have committed a serious act which threatens the State," justified judge Clara Ruiz Diaz. The lawyer of the two brothers Tarek Tuma described the judge's decision as "irrational, arbitrary and light" and asked for the magistrate's recusal.
A twist affair
Friday, Ronaldinho and his brother had to explain themselves before a judge. After a seven-hour interrogation, they had left the magistrate's office free. When he left the courthouse, Ronaldinho was assaulted by a cohort of journalists, but the player with 97 selections remained silent, refusing to answer questions.
Less than two hours later, the former player and his brother were boarding a police van to be escorted to the national police headquarters. An incomprehensible development for the Paraguayan lawyer for the two men, Adolfo Marin. "We do not know on what basis they were arrested," he told reporters.
Before their arrest, the prosecutor initially in charge of the file had estimated him that the two brothers had been "deceived", ensuring that they would not be prosecuted for entering Paraguay with false passports. This prosecutor had requested that the charges against the two Brazilians be dropped "with the condition that they admit to having committed the offense of which they are accused, that is to say the possession of false documents". "The information provided is very useful in dismantling a criminal gang specializing in the preparation of false documents," he said.
False passports discovered during a search
The falsified documents were detected on the arrival of Ronaldinho and his brother at Asuncion airport. But, according to their lawyer who disputes the version of the prosecution, the footballer did not present a false passport on his arrival. Paraguayan police searched the hotel where Ronaldinho came to Asuncion to promote a book. Investigators discovered false passports made in the Paraguayan capital a few months ago, according to Interior Minister Euclides Acevedo.
According to a police official, Gilberto Fleitas, Ronaldinho received these false passports from the hands of the Brazilian agent Wilmondes Sousa Lira, who was arrested. Two Paraguayan nationals, Maria Isabel Gayoso and Esperanza Apolonia Caballer, were also arrested in connection with the same case.
At the end of 2018, Brazilian justice had deprived Ronaldinho of a passport, following his conviction of a fine of 2.5 million dollars (around 2.25 million euros). Accused of having built a jetty without authorization on the edge of a lake in a protected area, he never paid the fine, according to Brazilian media.
Sport
Paraguay: Ronaldinho and his brother checked for false passports
- Soccer
- Sport
- Justice
- Paraguay
- Ronaldinho