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Brazilian Police Dismiss Rape Claim Against Neymar

Associated Press

   SAO PAULO - Brazilian police said Tuesday they have decided there are
   no grounds to bring rape charges against soccer star Neymar. And
   they're investigating whether his accuser filed a false report.

   "We checked all the possibilities. I did not see enough elements to
   indict," Sao Paulo police investigator Juliana Lopes Bussacos said in a
   press conference. She also rejected possible assault charges.

   Bussacos' decision could be revised by prosecutors within 15 days.

   Brazilian model Najila Trindade accused the 27-year-old forward of
   raping her in a Paris hotel in May. He denied the accusation and said
   their relations were consensual.

   Bussacos interviewed Trindade three times about her claims. She also
   said 12 other people were also questioned. Neymar himself heard for
   about five hours in mid-June.

   Police also inspected cellphones, a tablet of Trindade's son and
   medical reports offered by the accuser.

   The model filed her complaint in Sao Paulo on May 31, alleging Neymar
   raped her earlier in the month in Paris. No complaint was filed with
   French police. Her case has been complicated by the fact three of her
   attorneys withdrew from the case after the complaint was filed.

   Bussacos did not detail what led her to the conclusions because the
   probe is still under secrecy rules.

   "The whole set of evidence led me not to indict," the investigator
   said.

   Neymar's spokeswoman Day Crespo told The Associated Press the player
   will not make comments for now. The player is currently in a preseason
   tour of Asia with his club, Paris Saint-Germain.

   Cosme Araujo, an attorney for Trindade, told journalists the police
   conclusions are "absurd" and insisted Bussacos should have waited for
   security camera video from the Paris hotel. The investigator said those
   images were not essential to her investigation.

   Sao Paulo police director Albano David Fernandes said the investigators
   will look into whether Trindade falsely reported a rape, based on
   Bussaco's findings.

   Investigator Monique Lima said it would be premature to accuse Trindade
   of any crime.

   "That investigation is also under secrecy," Lima said. "We will indict
   anyone who has acted in bad faith. We will hear those involved to see
   if there was a slanderous accusation or a false report."

   Trindade's attorney did not comment on the investigation of his
   client's claims.

   The AP doesn't name alleged sexual assault victims unless they make
   their identities public, which Trindade did in several interviews.