Neymar lays bare WhatsApp messages to clear his name in rape accusation
Brazilian football star Neymar Junior has laid bare intimate WhatsApp messages he claims he exchanged with a female companion in a bid to prove his innocence over claims that he raped her.
The 27-year-old is the latest high profile footballer to be accused of such an offence after Portuguese star Ronaldo. Both could face lengthy jail terms if found guilty.
The Paris Saint Germain forward’s father has however accused the victim of blackmailing his son.
TOPLESS PHOTOS
As per a complaint filed with Sao Paulo police and reported by the UOL and Globo Esporte websites, Neymar potentially faces a jail term if found guilty of ‘using violence to have sex with the victim without her consent’.
“I am accused of rape, it’s a big word, it’s very strong, but that is what has happened. It surprised me, it’s a really ugly thing and a sad thing because anyone who knows me knows what kind of person I am and knows I would never do such a thing,” Neymar said in a seven-minute video posted on Instagram.
The former Barcelona player then showed what he said are a long series of WhatsApp messages with the woman, including topless photographs of her in bed.
INTIMATE MOMENTS
“These are intimate moments but it is necessary to make them public to prove that nothing really happened,” he said.
The unidentified woman, who lives in Brazil, allegedly met Neymar through Instagram, and after exchanging messages, the footballer invited her to visit him in Paris in mid-May.
According to the complaint, Neymar arrived at the hotel ‘apparently intoxicated’ and the two chatted and exchanged caresses.’
But then ‘he became aggressive and used violence to have sex with the victim without her consent’.