Athletes admitted to little damage
Police in Rio didn’t question swimmers on alleged vandalism
Police in Rio never questioned four U. S. swimmers about their alleged vandalism of a gas station restroom, further evidence that a poster was the only property damaged by Ryan Lochte during a stop that ended in a heated exchange with security guards and set off an international controversy that upstaged the Olympics.
The details came to light Tuesday after USA TODAY Sports viewed transcripts of testimony given by the swimmers to Rio law enforcement officials. An extensive review of surveillance footage and a visit to the gas station as part of a USA TODAY Sports investigation published Sunday had previously supported a statement by swimmer Gunnar Bentz that he did not see anyone vandalize the restroom.
Lochte has said his first account of the Aug. 14 incident to a journalist and police was exaggerated. He omitted that he and his teammates voluntarily stopped at the gas station, where they urinated behind bushes, overstated the property taken from him by security guards and the proximity of a gun pointed at him. Lochte has been pilloried for his initial statements and faces, along with three teammates, a disciplinary hearing before the International Olympic Committee.
Rio police characterized the incident as extensive vandalism committed by rambunctious athletes, a portrayal that heightened the backlash against Lochte in particular. In a news conference Thursday, the head of Rio’s civil police force, Fernando Veloso, said Lochte and his teammates broke a mirror and soap dispenser in the bathroom.
But in signed testimonies to police, the athletes were asked only about — and admitted to — damage to an advertising poster that was knocked down by Lochte.
“It was only an advertising sign,” said Breno Melaragno Costa, a lawyer who represented U. S. swimmer Jimmy Feigen in a settlement to avoid charges of filing a false police report. “This should not have been called vandalism. This is a manipulated piece of information.”
A witness, Fernando Deluz, who served as an intermediary when he saw security guards draw a gun on the swimmers, also says he understood the dis- pute to be only about the sign.
“I asked ( the gas station employees) what was happening. They said, ‘ Hey, the gringos broke a sign and peed here,’ ” Deluz said in an interview with USA TODAY Sports.
As new details of the encounter continue to emerge, legal experts in Rio say the security guards’ actions merit an investigation, claiming they might have broken Brazilian law by threatening the swimmers with guns as they demanded payment.
The crime experts point to arbitrary exercise of personal force, or vigilante justice.
USA TODAY Sports submitted written questions to the Rio police about the extent of the damage caused by the athletes and whether the security guards would be investigated. A police spokesperson confirmed by phone the receipt of the email but had not responded to questions.