Former FC Barcelona Physio Sentenced To 4 Years In Prison Due To Harassment - Reports

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 04th August, 2023) The Spanish Supreme Court has approved a four-year prison sentence for a former physiotherapist of FC Barcelona over allegations of harassing the football club's female employee during a massage session, Spanish sports newspaper Marca reported on Thursday, citing the court filing.

The incident took place in 2016 when the ex-physiotherapist massaged the woman in intimate parts of her body during treatment sessions, the newspaper reported. The harassment caused the woman an anxiety disorder and she was on sick leave for two months, the report said.

The defendant's lawyer has said that the procedure was justified by treatment purposes, but the court has rejected these arguments, the newspaper reported.

The court has deprived the football club's ex-physiotherapist of the right to work as an osteopath or physiotherapist for two years and ordered that he pay 10,000 Euros ($10,955) in compensation for the damage caused to the plaintiff, while FC Barcelona has been found subsidiarily responsible for the damage payments, the report added.