Celta Vigo striker Santi Mina has been sentenced to a four-year prison term and given a €50,000 fine after he was found guilty of sexual abuse by a court in Almeria.
The forward has, however, been acquitted of sexual assault, while former teammate David Goldar has been further acquitted on all charges of being his accomplice. The pair were on trial for an incident in 2017, when they both played for Valencia, and Mina's lawyers say they will appeal the verdict.
Mina, who started his career at Celta before a spell with Valencia between 2015 and 2019, was charged in late 2019 with sexual assault.
Legal proceedings have continued since then but it is only now that a verdict has finally been reached, with Mina having continued to play for Celta during the intervening period.
Judge Tarsila Martinez has handed down a four-year custodial sentence to the player, as well as a fine and a restraining order of 500 metres. Mina has, however, been acquitted of sexual assault, which would have carried a longer sentence, between eight and nine-and-a-half years.
Celta, meanwhile, announced on Wednesday that Mina would be removed from first-team training immediately while they open their own disciplinary investigation into the player.
Celta emphasized that his suspension from senior activities was a "precautionary" measure following his sentence.
Mina had played 33 La Liga games for the Spanish club in the 2021-22 campaign.
