Former Wolves and Nottingham Forest striker Rafa Mir has received an 8½-year prison sentence by a court in Spain after being found guilty of sexual assault.
"The Fourth Section of the Valencia Court has sentenced the footballer of Elche CF, and formerly of Valencia CF, to eight and a half years in prison," a Valencia court announced on Monday.
"He was tried on 28 May on charges of sexual assault and causing bodily harm." Mir and his friend and fellow footballer Pablo Jara were both arrested in September 2024 after two women accused them of sexual assault at Mir's residence.
Mir will also have to pay €64,000 as compensation to the victim.
The court has also sentenced Jara to two years in prison for sexual assault and a further six months for an offence against moral integrity, as well as ordering him to pay a €6,280 fine.
The sentence is not final and Mir confirmed on Monday he will appeal.
"I do not agree with the ruling and we will appeal in the coming days," Mir posted on Instagram.
"I still have faith in the justice system."
Mir, 28, who played this season on loan at LaLiga side Elche from Sevilla, maintained his innocence during the one-day hearing in Valencia on May 28 insisting the two women consented to having sexual relations with him.
Mir was playing on loan at Valencia from Sevilla at the time while Jara was on the books of lower division club Alcantarilla FC.
A former Spain under-21 and under-23 international, Mir started his senior career at Valencia, and also played for Las Palmas and Huesca.
