Hugo Mallo, the former captain of Celta Vigo, has been convicted of sexually assaulting a lady employed as the Espanyol mascot in the closing moments preceding a La Liga match.
A judge in Barcelona imposed a fine of €6,000 (£5,100) on him, along with an additional €1,000 in interest as compensation, after determining that Mallo inserted his hand into the victim’s parakeet costume and made contact with her chest. At the same time, she and another mascot awaited their turn to shake hands with opposing players. He will also be required to pay expenses. Mallo, formerly with Celta and currently with Aris in Greece, has declared his intention to appeal.
Judge Salvador Roig stated that Mallo had acted on his sexual impulses and had violated the victim’s sexual intimacy at the RCDE stadium in April 2019. Two Espanyol mascots awaited at the conclusion of the line of players welcoming Celta’s players: one donned a “male” parakeet costume, while the other wore a “female” costume. Mallo, as captain, was the first to conclude the queue and has been determined to have inserted his hands into the costume, prompting the victim to retreat a step.
The judge noted that Mallo had offered no alternative explanation, such as having accidentally touched the victim. Instead, he had denied the accusation. Mallo said he had greeted the players and the mascots in a usual manner and did not know the gender of the person in the costume. He said that he was aware that the game was being broadcast and that his actions would be caught on camera. He argued that the greeting video showed nothing unusual and immediately began his final warm-up.
In a statement published on Instagram, Mallo said he “totally disagrees” with the court’s ruling and “completely denies” the charges. His post included the video of the two teams shaking hands and him reaching the end of the line where the two mascots are.
“I would like to underline that the sentence noted that my statement to the court was firm and without contradiction, in which I recognised that at the end of the greetings and as I turned towards the middle of the pitch my hand could have touched the parakeet’s waist, [and] absolutely that there was not any touching of the parakeet’s chest.”
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