Valencia striker Rafa Mir has categorically denied allegations of sexual assault, issuing a statement through his lawyer, Jaime Campaner. Mir was arrested on Monday following a complaint filed against him by a woman and subsequently released on conditional bail pending an investigation. The judge leading the investigation will determine if there is sufficient evidence for a trial or if the case should be dropped.
Campaner stated that Mir vehemently denies the accusations and that the ongoing legal proceedings will ultimately prove the allegations to be false. The court is currently investigating Mir for an alleged crime of sexual assault involving intercourse. As part of his bail conditions, Mir is required to appear in court regularly and is prohibited from leaving the country throughout the investigation.
This incident is the latest in a string of high-profile sexual assault cases involving Spanish footballers. Last year, Celta Vigo terminated the contract of Santi Mina after he was sentenced to four years in prison for sexually abusing a woman in 2017. Similarly, Brazilian footballer Dani Alves was released from a Spanish prison in March after serving a portion of his sentence for the rape of a woman in a nightclub in 2022.
Mir has previously played for Wolverhampton Wanderers and Sevilla, who loaned him to his boyhood club Valencia. He has been given Thursday and Friday off and could return to training on Monday. The recent allegations have cast a shadow over Mir’s career, and it remains to be seen how the ongoing investigation will impact his future with Valencia. The football community is closely watching the case as it unfolds, raising questions about the sport’s response to sexual assault allegations and the need for stricter accountability.