Toronto police issued an arrest warrant Friday for a member of Brazil’s water polo team, who is wanted in connection with a sexual assault involving a 22-year-old woman.
Thye Mattos Ventura Bezerra, 27, was identified by sex crimes Insp. Joanna Beaven-Desjardins as the suspect at the centre of a sex assault investigation.
On July 16, the suspect and another Brazilian athlete allegedly accompanied the woman, along with a friend, home.
“The victim was sleeping when she was sexually assaulted,” said Beaven-Desjardins at a news conference.
The water polo goalkeeper left the country, along with the rest of his water polo team, later that day. The other Brazilian athlete is not a suspect, according to police.
“There could be other victims, he spent two weeks in Toronto,” Beaven-Desjardins said, adding that despite the lack of a Canada-Brazil extradition treaty, authorities are working on “bringing him back to face the charges.”
The victim is not a Pan Am Games volunteer.
“This has been a personal violation that’s now been made public and very high profile,” Beaven-Desjardins said.
Anyone with information is asked to called Toronto police’s sex crimes unit at 416-808-7474.
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