Prosecutors dropped
rape charges against Albuquerque jiu-jitsu coach and MMA
veteran Rafael de
Freitas on Friday.
According to a report from the
Albuquerque Journal, the 2nd Judicial District Attorney’s
Office entered a nolle prosequi in the case against de Freitas,
which means it was unwilling to prosecute. De Freitas, who is known
as “Barata,” was jailed and charged with third-degree sexual
criminal penetration after allegedly drugging and raping a
jiu-jitsu student at her home in November 2020.
“While probable cause existed at the time of arrest, additional
investigation has revealed that, at this time, there exists an
insufficient factual basis to meet the State’s burden at trial,”
court records state.
When the charges were initially filed, prosecutors were denied a
motion to detain de Freitas until his trial after attorney Jason
Bowles argued that it was a consensual encounter.
“This obviously is a case of what was consensual sex with a female
who has changed her mind, or perhaps she set up Mr. de Freitas to
begin with, because of a motive to hurt and destroy him which is
now well known,” Bowles wrote.
Bowles Law Firm also released a statement on de Freitas’ behalf
admitting that he made a transgression in his marriage but
denying his guilt of any type of sexual assault.
The 37-year-old de Freitas enjoyed some success competing in MMA
from 2007 to 2014. He compiled a 6-1 mark that included a draw
against former World Extreme Cagefighting veteran Antonio
Banuelos and a loss to UFC vet Jordan
Espinosa in Legacy Fighting Championship and suffered a
second-round TKO defeat to Cody
Bollinger in the elimination round of “TUF 18.”
After his arrest, De Freitas was removed from the instructor page
on the Jackson-Wink MMA website, and spokesman James Hallinan
denied that the jiu-jitsu coach was ever an employee of the gym. De
Freitas is a primary instructor at Gracie Barra New Mexico
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Academy in Albuquerque and was in former UFC
champ Holly Holm’s
corner for her win over Irene
Aldana in Albuquerque this past October.