A Spanish court has decided to grant conditional release to former Barcelona and Brazil footballer Dani Alves, who has served approximately one-fourth of his sentence for rape.

Alves, sentenced to four and a half years in prison last month, will be released upon payment of a €1m (£853,000) bail. He has been in pre-trial detention since January 2023, following his conviction for raping a woman in a Barcelona nightclub in December 2022.

The victim's legal representative denounced the decision as scandalous. Conditions for Alves' release include surrendering both his Brazilian and Spanish passports, weekly court appearances, and a restraining order prohibiting contact with the victim.

The court's ruling, with one judge in dissent, is subject to appeal. Victim advocate Ester Garcia criticized the decision, stating, "It's scandalous to see a person capable of paying a million euros at any moment being allowed to walk free."

Ms Garcia told RAC1 radio she was "outraged and dissatisfied" with the ruling, adding it was "a justice (system) for the rich" and that she would lodge an appeal.

Lawyers for Alves have not yet commented.

During last month's trial, prosecutors said Alves and his friend had bought champagne for three young women before Alves lured one of them to a VIP area of the nightclub with a toilet which she did not know of.

They argued that it was at this point he turned violent, forcing the woman to have s*x despite her repeated requests to leave.

Alves had maintained she could have left "if she wanted to". However, the court found that she did not consent.

Spanish law was changed recently to enshrine the importance of consent under the so-called "Only Yes is Yes" principle.

In a statement, the court said there was evidence other than the victim's testimony that proved that she had been raped.

It said Alves had "abruptly grabbed the complainant" and thrown her to the ground. He had then raped her while preventing her from moving as "the complainant said no and wanted to leave", it added.

The woman said the rape had caused her "anguish and terror", and one of her friends who were with her on the night described how the 23-year-old had cried "uncontrollably" after leaving the bathroom.

Alves changed his testimony on several occasions.

He first denied knowing his accuser only to claim later that he had met her in the toilet but that nothing had happened between them.

He then changed his version of events again, saying that they had had consensual sex. "We were both enjoying ourselves," he alleged.

Alves played more than 400 times for Barcelona, winning six league titles and three Champions Leagues across two spells with the club. He was also part of Brazil's 2022 World Cup squad.

He has won trophies playing for Sevilla, Juventus and PSG and is among Brazil's most capped internationals, with 126 appearances.

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