Alves once had a £47m fortune but now has a negative bank balance of £17,000

  /  autty

Dani Alves has been sentenced to four-and-a-half years after having been found guilty of rape, but goes to prison with a negative balance of £17,000 despite being ordered to pay the legal costs and £128,000 fine issued by the court to the victim.

The disgraced former Barcelona star was told he had been found guilty this morning at the Barcelona court where he was tried earlier this month after being driven to court in a police van.

As well as his sentence he picked up an order to pay damages of £128,000 (€150,000) to his accuser as well as legal costs for the trial.

However, his lawyer previously claimed that her client 'is broke' and has a 'negative bank balance of £17,000', meaning the ex-Brazil international may struggle to meet the fine he has been levelled with.

Alves was being represented by lawyer Ines Guardiola, who had, according to Mundo Deportivo per OneFootball, claimed that Alves also 'has a legal embargo on another £42,795 (€50k) worth of assets.'

It comes as the Brazilian, who played for Sevilla, Barcelona, Juventus and Paris Saint-Germain during his career as a professional footballer, reportedly once had a fortune of £47million.

According to Marca, his last major contract with UNAM Pumas saw him reportedly receive more than £256,840-per-month (€300k).

The outlet also claims that he earned approximately £8.6m (€10m) annually at Barcelona.

The father-of-two has in the past set up multiple businesses, including a representation agency called Flashforward Group, a sports advisory company called Cedro Esports and a fashion brand DM3 Fashion Moda.

But in February 2023, reports stated that Alves was 'facing a £4m claim from former club UNAM Pumas for a breach of contract.'

His contract was terminated after the Brazilian footballer had been jailed on remand without bail over the alleged sexual assault of a woman in a high-end Barcelona nightclub called Sutton in 2022.

The 40-year-old father-of-two is now facing his first night behind bars as a convicted sex offender.

He had been held on remand at Brians 2 Prison near the Catalan capital since his arrest in January last year.

Judicial officials confirmed on Thursday: 'Daniel Alves has been sentenced to four and a half years in prison after being convicted of sexual assault.

'The court also ordered him to stay away from his victim for nine and a half years and determined he should pay his victim 150,000 euros and pay costs.

Alves protested his innocence on February 7 after taking the stand on the last day of his three-day trial at Barcelona's Audiencia Provincial court.

His accuser gave evidence on the first day of the trial from behind a screen.

The trial initially commenced on Monday February 5 just before 10.30am, with Spanish press reporting negotiations over a potential plea bargain had taken place. That would have seen Alves admit to wrongdoing and receive a four-year prison sentence.

He is alleged to have slapped the alleged victim and forced the woman to have sex with him in a toilet of the night club.

It is understood that State prosecutors wanted to jail him for nine years if  convicted.

Alves, who was ordered to stand trial last November, had denied any wrongdoing but admitted to cheating on his wife with his accuser, insisting sex was consensual.

He had previously admitted to having never met his accuser but later changed his story claiming there was no assault and there had been consent.

In 2023, the former Barcelona defender appeared in an exclusive interview from his cell in Brians 2 Prison near the Catalan city with Spanish TV and newspaper reporter Mayka Navarro.

He stated: 'The only person I have to ask for forgiveness is my wife, Joana Sanz.'

According to prosecutors, his accuser is currently being treated for post-traumatic stress and had left his female accuser feeling 'anguish and terror'.

Alves has also had repeated bail requests turned down, while his legal team lost a battle to keep the trial behind closed doors.

Related: Barcelona D.Alves
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