In addition to the sporting bodies investigating and taking action against suspended RFEF President Luis Rubiales, he is now vulnerable to charges from ordinary justice after an investigation was opened into his non-consensual kiss of Spain forward Jenni Hermoso.
Rubiales has been suspended by FIFA for 90 days, while the Spanish Government have begun proceedings to see him suspended too. Meanwhile the RFEF, Spain’s national football body, have emitted a public statement asking for his immediate resignation.
Now Cadena Cope report that the Prosecutor Fiscal in Spain has opened an investigation into the matter. Once they are clear on the facts, they will inform Hermoso of her rights in terms of submitting a legal complaint against Rubiales – she will have 15 days to respond.
If she does decide to press charges, then Rubiales could face punishment under the new law dubbed ‘only yes is yes’, which includes forced kisses under sexual assault in Spain. In said case, those verdicts can carry punishments of 1-4 years in prison if no violence is involved, while cases involving the use of force can be punished with up to five years in prison.
Hermoso has declared, via her union FUTPRO, that she will be pursuing action against Rubiales and presumably will be willing to press charges as a result. She recently said she was ‘very happy’ with all of the support she had been receiving from across Spain and the world.
