Neymar's father announces he will not help Dani Alves pay bail

Neymar da Silva, the father of footballer Neymar Jr, has announced on social media networks that he will not help Dani Alves with the bail money.

His son's former teammate did not leave prison today after he didn't pay the €1 million bail set by the court.

At first it seemed that Neymar's father would help the former footballer pay the bail after he had already done so with a compensation of €150,000 that Alves' defense handed to the victim.

"I hope Daniel finds the answers he is looking for with his family. For us the matter is over. Full stop," Neymar senior said.

"As everyone knows, at the beginning I helped Dani Alves, without any link to any process. In this second moment, in a different situation, in which the Spanish courts have already opted for the sentence, it is being speculated and some are trying to associate my name and that of my son with a matter that is no longer our responsibility," Neymar da Silva wrote.

Alves was sentenced to 4.5 years in prison for raping a woman in the toilets of a nightclub in Barcelona in December 2022 and spent fourteen months in pre-trial detention.

Bail conditions

Barcelona Court granted Alves release from prison on €1 million bail, despite having served only a quarter of his four-and-a-half-year sentence for sexual assault.

In addition to the payment, Alves is required to surrender both his Brazilian and Spanish passports, refrain from contacting the victim, and personally attend court every week.

The court's decision came after Alves' defense requested his release on Tuesday, despite opposition from the prosecution and the victim's legal team.

The judges argue that the sentence imposed is much lower than the 9 years requested by the prosecution and the 12 years requested by the victims' defense, noting that Alves has already spent 14 months in preventive detention. 

The court also argues that Alves does not currently have the economic capacity he had before his arrest, as he no longer has football and advertising contracts.  

However, in setting the €1 million bail, the judges have taken into account that Alves will soon receive an important sum of funds held by the Spanish tax authorities.  

"Dangerous" precedent

The lawyer of the young woman affirmed that the release of Alves in exchange for bail is a "dangerous" precedent as it will make people think there is a certain type of justice "for the rich" and a separate judicial system for the rest of the population.

According to lawyer Ester García, Alves was already handed a lenient sentence for having paid the court €150,000, and now he can avoid the rest of his prison sentence by paying €1 million.

For García, the risk that Alves could flee the country is "obvious."

The court's decision has been received with great "indignation" by the victim, who does not understand it.