Ronaldinho released from Paraguayan prison on bail

Asuncion, April 8 (IANS) Ronaldinho will be allowed to leave jail after a Paraguayan judge granted his request for house arrest, prosecutors have said.

The Brazilian football great and his brother, Roberto Assis, have been held at a prison in Asuncion since March 6 for using fake passports.

The pair will be relocated to a hotel in the center of Asuncion after agreeing to pay $1.6 million in bail during a court hearing. Judges had rejected three previous bail requests by the brothers, reports Xinhua news agency.

“The bail amount was important,” prosecutor Osmar Legal told reporters on Tuesday. “They previously offered to use a house that was not even in their name as a guarantee. Now they have opened checking accounts in their name and deposited the amounts,” he added.

It is also reported that Ronaldinho and Assis will stay at the four-star Palmaroga Hotel while authorities continue to investigate the case.

The former Barcelona playmaker travelled with Assis to Paraguay on March 4 to participate in a children’s charity event and promote a new book. They were arrested later that day for entering the country with false travel documents.

The pair have denied any wrongdoing and said they were presented with the passports as a “gift” upon arriving in Asuncion.

Ronaldinho retired from football in 2018 after a career that included spells at Gremio, Paris Saint-Germain, Barcelona, Milan and Atletico Mineiro, among other clubs. He was a part of the Brazil team that won the 2002 World Cup in Japan and South Korea and was twice voted the FIFA world player of the year.

–IANS

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