Rafael “Barata” Freitas was the subject of a serious sexual assault allegation this week when a student of his went to the police over an alleged incident where he drugged her and committed criminal sexual penetration. Perhaps most curiously, according to the original report of the sexual assault allegations in the Albuquerque Journal, detectives believed that the footage from a security camera that was given to them showed Barata “possibly” slipping something into the woman’s drink when she went to the toilet. However, the statement by his attorney indicates that the same video actually proves his innocence.
Of course, nobody can be certain of the outcome of these allegations as yet, but we will keep you updated as the story develops. The full statement by Barata’s attorney is below:
“We represent Rafael de Freitas Barata, a well loved and very accomplished jujitsu practitioner. To date, the public has received one-sided reports of sexual assault based on the word of the alleged victim and a video, which no news agency or the public has seen. We have now watched the video. Let us be clear: these charges are false. The video proves Mr. de Freitas’ innocence of a crime. We will present evidence that she invited Mr. de Freitas over that morning in texts, poured alcohol and had liquid THC, and her actions and responses during the video reflect a completely consensual encounter. Her statements to police also show that she had had motives to bring these false charges. Mr. de Freitas willingly admits and is remorseful about making a terrible error in his marriage and towards his wife. But he is absolutely innocent of any criminal sexual assault and his and his family’s name and reputation have been falsely maligned. We are asking everyone to reserve judgment until all of the evidence is presented in Court.”
