New York Times just published an excellent expose on the Fight Sports Miami sexual abuse coverup. We advise everyone go check it out – and will just point out some key new information the Times’ excellent reporting uncovered.
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NY Times is quick to point out Cyborg’s denial of wrongdoing to them is actually countering his own social media claims
“Abreu does not face any accusations of sexual misconduct, and he told The Times that he never dismissed the accusers’ concerns or tried to intimidate anyone.
But in a statement on Instagram on Aug. 13, Abreu acknowledged some missteps. He wrote, “To the victims and their families, I am sorry for my poor handling, ill-preparedness and lack of proper leadership to address the horrible experience they had to go through.”
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NY Times uncovered an attempt to silence a witness in the Campo Grande sexual assault aftermath
“A former member of the Fight Sports team who participated in the camp confirmed in an interview that Chaouat recounted the incident, and Abreu’s reaction, to him at the time. The witness asked not to be identified in this article. After a statement he made to Jassim was published in August, the witness said, Abreu’s father and two black belt jiu-jitsu fighters visited his mother’s home in Brazil in an apparent attempt to silence him, warning that he should “stay out of it.”
“Abreu said he “made no such statements” to Chaouat dismissing the attack and did not pressure her to drop the charges against Figueiró. Instead, Abreu said, he ordered Figueiró to leave the camp. “I respect all women and I do not condone sexual misconduct, and that is why the person involved in her incident was expelled from the team,” Abreu said.
Abreu’s father, also named Roberto, visited the witness’s mother’s house, Abreu said, to tell the witness to stop spreading “false information about Fight Sports and myself.”
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Cyborg denies having helped Marcel Goncalves get out of US and into Brazil – but confirms Marcel Goncalves is in their hometown of Campo Grande
“Hours after that hearing, Abreu sent a statement to The New York Times, denying speculation in the jiu-jitsu community that he had helped Gonçalves flee the country. But Abreu acknowledged visiting his Brazilian hometown, Campo Grande, a month earlier and encountering Gonçalves there.
Asked in writing if he had alerted authorities in Florida or Brazil to Gonçalves’s location, Abreu did not answer directly. He wrote, “I told Marcel that he needed to take responsibility for his actions, and I permanently cut ties with him.”
*For the purposes of writing this article, quoted segments from the New York Times article are in italic. This is not to replace their coverage. It’s just a summary of new information for those of us keeping score. Thus far? 10-6 for Mo Jassim.