Former Manchester City footballer Robinho must serve a nine-year prison sentence in Brazil following his 2017 rape conviction in Italy, a Brazilian high court has ruled.
Robinho was found guilty, along with five others, of sexually assaulting a woman in a Milan nightclub in 2013.
The former Brazil international was sentenced to nine years in prison and has lost two appeals to overturn his conviction, but continues to deny any wrongdoing.
However, until now it was always a probability that the 40-year-old, who also played for Real Madrid and AC Milan, would not serve his sentence as he is based in Brazil and the country does not extradite its citizens.
But on Wednesday, judges on Brazil’s Superior Court of Justice voted 9-2 to validate the conviction and he will now serve his sentence in his homeland.
The first judge to vote, Francisco Falco, said: ‘There’s no obstacle to validate the execution of his sentence. It was confirmed by a court in Milan, which is the competent authority in this case.
‘The conviction is final. The defendant was not put on trial in absence in Italy, he had representation.’
Robinho can appeal the decision to Brazil’s Supreme Court and his lawyers have suggested that he will seek to do so.
Robinho became the most expensive player in British football when he moved from Real to newly-rich City for £32.5million in 2008.
He struggled in the Premier League and was sold to Milan two years later, and was playing for the Serie A giants when the offence took place.
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