The two young women appearing in the sexual content videos that have put Real Madrid defender Raúl Asencio and his former teammates Ferrán Ruiz, Juan Rodríguez, and Andrés García on trial have confirmed this Thursday to the judge overseeing the oral hearing that they have forgiven the four involved. This forgiveness enables the Prosecutor’s Office to withdraw the charges it brought against the four for the crimes of revealing secrets (distributing intimate content images without permission). This is precisely the crime Raúl Asencio is accused of.
However, the forgiveness does not annul the charges of child pornography also brought against former youth players Ruiz, Rodríguez, and García (but not against Asencio, who was not present at the time of the events) for having recorded a sexual video with a minor (one of the girls was 16 years old when the events occurred, in 2023). This is a type of crime where the victim’s forgiveness does not extinguish liability.
The Prosecutor’s Office requests a prison sentence of two years, six months, and one day for Real Madrid footballer Raúl Asencio, a fine of 100 euros per day for 24 months, and compensation of 10,000 euros for two crimes against privacy for sharing a sexual content video of two women, one under 16 and the other 18, who were unaware they had been recorded. For the other three, the Public Ministry demands a sentence of four years and seven months and a prohibition to approach within 500 meters of the victims’ homes or workplaces. Additionally, they must compensate each of the two women with 25,000 euros.
The first victim, a minor at the time of the events, testified via videoconference and first responded to the Prosecutor’s questioning. She explained that the young women had met with the accused at the beach club and that the four defendants were at the venue when the group arrived. The witness stated that they knew her age and even commented that she did not look it.
Once inside the establishment, the group moved to a pool located in a private area. There, she testified, she had consensual sexual relations with two of the accused, Ferran Ruiz and Juan Rodríguez, while Andrés García and another of the young women did the same in the same space. Raúl Asencio remained outside, in the pool area, with another friend. The witness maintained that she never saw them recording, although she did notice the accused passing a mobile phone around.
Upon leaving the private area, one of her friends said she believed they had been recorded. The young women told the accused, who deleted the videos in front of them, according to their version. The declarant specified that she saw the files in the phone’s gallery, although only the thumbnails. They left the venue convinced the images no longer existed. Later, her then-partner told her the video was still circulating and that, in his words, “everyone” had it. It was Asencio who showed it to her, she declared. Before going to the police, the young woman spoke with the footballer, who admitted showing it to her and assured her the “bad” video was deleted.
The second victim gave a consistent account and added three clarifications. That they had met the accused two days before the events. That the conversation about ages was not limited to the minor, but they talked about all their ages, and on several occasions, the defendants commented on how old they looked. And that when she left the private area to ask after seeing a phone appear, the accused first denied the recordings and only later admitted to having made them, before deleting them in front of them and apologizing. The young women began investigating on their own after receiving comments and hints from others, she recounted, and thus learned that several people had received the video in a single-view format. When questioned again, the accused denied that the images were being distributed.
Both have forgiven the four defendants. The first did so accused by accused, at the Prosecutor’s questioning, and insisted that no external condition had intervened: “It was all of my own free will. No one forced me.” The second added a reason: “I do it of my own will and so this ends now.”
The events judged occurred on June 15, 2023, at a beach club in southern Gran Canaria. Three former Real Madrid youth players, already detached from the club, had relations with the young women: Ferrán Ruiz and Juan Rodríguez Lima with the minor, and Andrés García Alemán with the 18-year-old girl. There was also another 17-year-old woman at the location. Asencio is charged with a crime of revealing secrets in concurrence with another of child pornography: he allegedly received the video and showed it to a third party knowing it had been recorded without permission, that the victims had asked for it to be deleted, and that one of them was a minor.
According to the prosecutor’s account in an order accessed by this newspaper, Ferrán began recording without consent and then passed the phone to Juan, who continued filming and photographing. The three later provided the material to third parties intending to undermine the dignity of the minor and the privacy of both.
The minor’s defense requested at the beginning of June four years in prison for Asencio and the opening of trial for revealing secrets and child pornography against him and the three former youth players. For these, the Prosecutor requests four years and seven months, prohibition to approach within 500 meters of the victims’ homes or workplaces, and 25,000 euros in compensation for each of the two women.
This trial began just one day after it became public that Asencio was sanctioned last August with more than 14,000 euros in total and the withdrawal of his driving license for eight months for drunk driving in Gran Canaria. Shortly before the oral hearing began, Real Madrid coach José Mourinho confirmed that the club has opened proceedings against the player and expressed words that sound like a warning. “A Real Madrid player is a Real Madrid player 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and 12 months a year. Everything you do outside your professional area is still Real Madrid and continues to damage the prestige of a club that is untouchable, that cannot be touched. And with that, I am practically telling you that I am not happy. Everyone makes mistakes, but accumulated mistakes are a different matter,” Mourinho said at a press conference.
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