Former footballers convicted of sexually assaulting 15-year-old girl

Ex-Arandina FC players jailed for 38 years each after attack on teenager

Former Spanish footballers (L-R) Carlos Cuadrado, Victor Rodriguez, and Raul Calvo who were jailed on 12 December 2019 for sexually assaulting a 15-year-old girl in 2017. (Santi Otero/EPA)

Three Spanish footballers have been sentenced to 38 years in prison each after sexually assaulting a teenage girl.

Carlos Cuadrado, 24, Victor Rodriguez, 22, and Raul Calvo, 19, were found guilty gang raping a 15-year-old at a flat they shared in the town of Aranda de Duero, in northern Spain.

The men were accused of inviting the girl to their apartment, where they turned the lights off and took her “by surprise” as they forced her to perform sex acts before she had a chance to react, according to Spanish daily newspaper El Pais.

The trio, who played for third-division team Arandina FC before they were dropped by the club following their arrest in December 2017, denied the allegations.

They said they did not have sexual relations with the girl and that they did not know she was 15 at the time.

It is not clear whether the men will appeal against the ruling.

Although they have been sentenced to 38 years in jail, the maximum time they will serve is 20 years, in accordance with Spanish law.

Sexual assault under Spanish law is the equivalent of rape and carries a prison sentence of between 15 and 20 years. Sexual abuse is considered a lesser crime.

Violence and intimidation are required for the crime of sexual assault under Spanish law.

Additional reporting by Associated Press.

If you have been affected by sexual violence, you can find help via the NHS. Rape Crisis offers specialist support for women and girls; and the The Survivors’ Trust supports people of any gender.