Rafael de
Freitas is denying the
sexual assault charges levied against him by one of his
students stemming from an incident on Nov. 7.
The Albuquerque, New Mexico-based jiu-jitsu instructor and MMA
veteran has been jailed after being accused of drugging and raping
a client on that aforementioned date. Bowles Law Firm, which is
representing de Freitas in the case, released a statement on the
situation Wednesday.
The full statement, which was first obtained by
MMAjunkie.com , is as follows:
We represent Rafael de
Freitas Barata, a well-loved and very accomplished ju-jitsu
practitioner. To date, the public has received one-sided reports of
sexual assault based on the word of the alleged victim and a video,
which no news agency or the public has seen. We have now watched
the video. Let us be clear: these charges are false.
The video proves Mr. de Freitas’ innocence of a crime. We will
present evidence that she invited Mr. de Freitas over that morning
in texts, poured alcohol and had liquid THC, and her actions and
responses during the video reflect a completely consensual
encounter. Her statements to police also show that she had had
motives to bring these false charges.
Mr. de Freitas willingly admits and is remorseful about making a
terrible error in his marriage and towards his wife. But he is
absolutely innocent of any criminal sexual assault and his and his
family’s name and reputation have been falsely maligned. We are
asking everyone to reserve judgment until all of the evidence is
presented in court.
According to a police report obtained by the
Albuquerque Journal, de Freitas is seen “possibly” dropping a
substance into the woman’s orange juice while she is in the
bathroom. The woman, who had been taking lessons from de Freitas
for several years, had the instructor in her home to get a massage
to alleviate cramping in her legs. The victim claims she began
“feeling sleepy” and “quickly passed out” as de Freitas began the
massage.
When the woman awoke, she was naked from the waist down. When she
messaged de Freitas to express her embarrassment, he responded,
“Yeah, you were fine don’t feel this way at all you’re good.”
According to security footage given to the police, the woman’s legs
appear to get “heavy” during the massage and de Freitas is seen
removing her shorts, where he allegedly performs oral sex on her
while she is passed out. The instructor also appears to rub the
woman’s “limp” hand on his genitals before leaving. The woman
remains motionless on the couch for 50 minutes before getting
up.
The victim told police that de Freitas is flirtatious with her and
other clients and that she sometimes “found his behavior
inappropriate” but there was never any romantic involvement between
the two.
De Freitas is a primary instructor Gracie Barra New Mexico
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Academy in Albuquerque and also helped corner
Holly
Holm for her victory over Irene
Aldana in Abu Dhabi on Oct. 3. Jackson-Wink MMA released a
statement to the Journal denying that de Freitas has ever been an
employee of the gym. De Freitas compiled a 6-1-1 record as a
professional mixed martial artist and was defeated during the
elimination round on Season 18 of “The Ultimate Fighter.”