Boxer Blows Olympic Chances With Arrest in Rio

Morocco's Hassan Saada is accused of sexually assaulting 2 women
By Jenn Gidman,  Newser Staff
Posted Aug 5, 2016 1:03 PM CDT
Boxer Blows Olympic Chances With Arrest in Rio
The Olympic Village at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on Friday.   (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

Morocco's Hassan Saada was set to square off in the boxing ring against a Turkish competitor at the Olympics on Saturday, but instead he'll be in a Rio jail. The 22-year-old athlete was arrested Friday morning at the Olympic Village on charges that he sexually assaulted two maids (some reports have them listed as waitresses), USA Today reports. The chief investigator in the case told reporters the women filed a report that alleged he restrained and fondled them after asking them to come to his room Wednesday, the AP reports.

The BBC cites local media that quoted police as saying Saada is accused of shoving one woman against the wall and trying to kiss her; he's alleged to have groped the breast of the second woman and made obscene hand gestures. Police say he lured them over by asking them to pose for a picture with him, per the Independent, which notes his Olympic eligibility has been withdrawn. Brazilian law allows a suspect to be held "for a long period" during a crime investigation, adds AP. (More 2016 Olympics stories.)

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