Brazilian police say they have jailed a Moroccan Olympic boxer on allegations he sexually assaulted two Brazilian women.
In a statement, police say they arrested boxer Hassan Saada on Friday for possible assaults on two Brazilian women who worked as waitresses in the Olympic village.
According to the statement, the attacks happened Wednesday. No other details were given.
Police say Saada will be jailed for a period of 15 days while they conduct a rape investigation. Under Brazilian law, suspects can be held for a long period of time while a case is examined.
He was due to compete Saturday. A light heavyweight boxer, he was set to fight Mehmet Nadir of Turkey in the preliminary rounds Saturday at 12:30 p.m. He was not predicted to be a medal contender.
Update 8/8, 2:11 p.m.: A second boxer has been arrested for the attempted rape of a female employee in the Olympic village, Al Jazeera English confirms.
Jonas Junius, 22, is a Namibian boxer who held his country's flag during the opening ceremony. He is expected to be transferred to Rio's Bangu prison later today.
Hassan Saada was disqualified from the games last week after allegations he too assaulted women; Morocco World News reports Saada has maintained his innocence while he's being held and the Moroccan Royal Federation of Boxing stands behind him as well. In a statement, the organization said it "declares that the accused remains innocent until proven otherwise."
