Real Madrid defender Raul Asencio has been cleared of all allegations relating to the alleged distribution of an intimate video involving a minor, according to The Athletic.
Spanish prosecutors have dropped the case against the 23-year-old, who had been accused of passing on footage recorded without the consent of the people involved. Asencio was not accused of taking part in the recording itself.
Investigators alleged that Asencio had requested the video and later showed it to another acquaintance. The decision by prosecutors removes all the allegations against the defender in connection with the case.
Three of Asencio’s former team-mates from the Real Madrid youth set-up also appeared before the court. Ferran Ruiz, Juan Rodriguez and Andres Garcia were each given suspended prison sentences of one year.
The three men were also ordered to stay away from the victims for two years and were banned from working with minors for a period of three years. The source article does not provide further details about the circumstances surrounding those sentences.
Asencio’s case had centred specifically on the alleged sharing of the video. The player had not faced accusations that he was directly involved in filming it, with the investigation instead focusing on the alleged request for the recording and its subsequent disclosure to another person.
The conclusion of the proceedings means the Real Madrid defender is no longer facing the allegations brought against him by Spanish prosecutors. The Athletic reported the development, although no further details about the timing or formal process behind the decision were given.
Asencio has also previously been involved in a separate legal matter. He was found guilty of driving while under the influence of alcohol and was fined 14,400 euros.
He was additionally disqualified from driving. That case is separate from the investigation into the intimate video and does not relate to the allegations that have now been withdrawn.
The proceedings involving Asencio and his former youth-team colleagues therefore resulted in different outcomes. While Ruiz, Rodriguez and Garcia received suspended sentences and restrictions on contact with the victims and employment involving minors, prosecutors removed all accusations against Asencio.
The defender’s name had been linked to the case because investigators believed he had obtained the recording and shown it to someone else. However, the allegations did not state that he had participated in making the footage.
With the accusations against him dropped, Asencio has been fully cleared in the Spanish prosecutors’ case concerning the alleged dissemination of the non-consensual video.