The Brazilian police investigation into allegations of violence against the Manchester United winger Antony has been dropped by the Sao Paulo civil police “without indictment”, his legal representative has stated.
Antony, who denied the allegations, is understood to have voluntarily been interviewed by Brazilian police last June. The winger, who was not arrested or charged, was also the subject of a Greater Manchester police investigation.
Antony’s former partner Gabriela Cavallin made numerous accusations which were investigated by GMP. A second woman, Ingrid Lana, has also made allegations against him which related to a meeting in Manchester.
It is not known which allegations GMP investigated but Antony denied all the allegations in an interview on Brazilian TV last September. On Tuesday the 24-year-old’s lawyers issued a statement.
It said: “The defence of footballer Antony Matheus dos Santos, in light of the news published by the [Brazilian] press this Tuesday (08/20/24), publicly confirms that the police investigation conducted by the 5th women’s police precinct of São Paulo Civil Police has been closed without police indictment.
“The defence always believed that the investigations, which were conduct[ed] under seal, would demonstrate Antony’s innocence.”
Whether GMP’s investigation remains open is unclear. The force could not be contacted by the Guardian on Tuesday evening.
United granted Antony a leave of absence last September to deal with the allegations. At that time, he said: “I have agreed with Manchester United to take a period of absence while I address the allegations made against me. This was a mutual decision to avoid distraction to my teammates and unnecessary controversy for the club. I want to reiterate my innocence of the things I have been accused of, and I will fully cooperate with the police to help them reach the truth. I look forward to returning to play as soon as possible.”
Antony has faced accusations of physical aggression towards Cavallin on a number of occasions since January of last year. Separately, the Brazilian newspaper Extra reported that the influencer and law student Rayssa de Freitas had filed a police report in May 2022 against the player alleging she sustained injuries in an incident involving him and another woman after a night out in São Paulo.
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Lana, a banker, claimed to Brazil’s RecordTV that an incident occurred at Antony’s home in Manchester in October 2022 in which he “pushed me against the wall, and I hit my head”.
Source: theguardian.com
