A Brazilian judge barred Robinho from leaving the country on Friday while he considers whether the footballer’s nine-year rape sentence, handed down by an Italian court, can be served in the South American country.
The sportsman was prohibited from leaving the country, according to Judge Francisco Falcao. He has five days to turn in his passport, according to a statement from Brazil’s Superior Court of Justice (STJ).
Judge Falcao of the STJ is examining an Italian request for Robson de Souza’s sentence to be carried out in his native country.
In his ruling Friday, Falcao cited the “gravity of the crime, the international repercussions of the case and the economic conditions of the player which could facilitate an eventual escape from Brazil.”
Robinho was among a group of six men accused of gang raping an Albanian woman celebrating her 23rd birthday in a Milan nightclub in 2013 when he was playing for AC Milan.
A nine-year sentence for the former Selecao and Real Madrid player was upheld by Italy’s top court, after which Italian prosecutors issued an international arrest warrant.
Brazil does not extradite its nationals, however, and Italy asked that Robinho be made to serve his sentence in his home country instead.