A court in Almería has given the defence of former Celta Vigo forward Santi Mina ten days to submit its arguments on how his four-year prison sentence for sexual abuse should be carried out. The conviction, which dates back to a 2017 incident and has been upheld by Spain’s Supreme Court, is now moving towards enforcement.
Next Steps in the Case
According to the order issued by the Third Section of the Almería Provincial Court, the 30-year-old’s lawyers must file their submissions in a single document. Because the sentence exceeds two years, a suspension is no longer an option, so the court’s next step will be to order Mina to report voluntarily to a prison of its choosing.
The court has also asked him to confirm that he will comply with a 12-year restraining order. He must stay at least 500 metres away from the victim and avoid all contact with her by any means. The court has warned him that breaching these conditions could be treated as a separate crime.
The Verdict
The ruling, delivered in May 2022, found Mina guilty of sexual abuse against a woman in Mojácar, Almería, in June 2017. The panel acquitted him of the more serious sexual assault charge, for which prosecutors had sought eight years and the private prosecution had asked for nine and a half. In addition to the prison term, he was ordered to pay the victim 50,000 euros in compensation.
The same trial also saw David Goldar, a footballer who was playing for Ibiza at the time and now plays for Pafos in Cyprus, cleared of the sexual assault charge brought only by the private prosecution. The Public Prosecutor’s Office had not pursued charges against him.
Evidence and Club Response
During the trial, forensic doctors and psychologists from the Almería Institute of Legal Medicine told the court that the genital injury the victim had suffered was consistent with sexual assault. They also linked her diagnosed post-traumatic stress symptoms directly to the events she described.
Celta Vigo, where Mina had been part of the first-team squad under coach Eduardo Coudet, opened a disciplinary file once the sentence became public and removed him from first-team training as a precaution. The club eventually terminated his contract in August 2023. Mina had spent time at Al-Shabab in Saudi Arabia before that.
Source: www.lanacion.com.ar
