Trial was resumed in a virtual plenary session following a request from Gilmar Mendes; Former player was arrested in March for rape in Italy
The minister of the STF (Supreme Federal Court) Cármen Lúcia voted this Saturday (16.nov.2204) to maintain the prison of former football player Robson de Souza, known as Robinho, sentenced to 9 years in prison for rape and who has been in prison since March of this year. The score is 5 to 1, with just 1 vote left to reach the majority.
Cármen followed the vote of Luiz Fux, rapporteur of the case. Ministers Edson Fachin, Luís Roberto Barroso, president of the Court, and Cristiano Zanin also voted in this regard.
Carmen argues that the “impunity” for committing crimes like this “more than just neglect, it is a permanent incentive for the continuation of this state of affairs of inhumanity and cynicism, installed against all women in all corners of the planet”.
The 2 habeas corpus trial began in September, but was stopped due to a request for review (more time for analysis) from Gilmar. It has now resumed, in a virtual plenary (when there is no debate) and will continue until November 26th.
The only one who spoke out to release Robinho was the Dean of the Court, Gilmar Mendes. He decided to suspend the homologation process of the Italian sentence, currently being processed by the STJ, with the consequent release of the former player. If the vote is unsuccessful, he says that, considering the lack of final judgment in the case, Robinho should be released immediately.
The dean says, however, that his opinion should not be confused with any value judgment regarding the Italian justice process, nor is it intended to discuss the fact for which Robinho was convicted. According to the minister, he discusses the imposition of prison through transfer of sentence execution.
ROBINHO PRISON
The trial that determined that Robinho would serve a sentence for rape in Brazil was on March 20 of this year, at the STJ (Superior Court of Justice). This is because, in 2017, the former player was sentenced to 9 years in prison in Italy for a rape that allegedly occurred in 2013, in a nightclub in Milan. At the time, he played for Milan.
The Court’s judgment analyzed the validation of the Italian court’s decision, allowing the former player to serve his sentence in Brazilian territory. In other words, it was not a new trial of the actions that were processed abroad, but rather an examination to verify whether the sentence met the formal requirements set out to carry out approval.
The Court also decided that Robinho’s sentence should be served immediately in a closed regime. He was arrested by the PF (Federal Police), in Santos, the day after the trial. This is one of the points questioned by habeas corpus. The former player’s defense asks that Robinho remain free until the resources in the case are exhausted.
