Alexander Zverev can now breathe a sigh of relief after agreeing to an out-of-court settlement with his former girlfriend over his alleged domestic abuse case.
Zverev is playing at the 2024 Roland Garros, where he reached his second Grand Slam final on Friday. He defeated Casper Ruud in the second semifinal. But his tennis achievements have been overshadowed by events in the court of law in recent days.
The German World No.4 was previously accused by his ex-girlfriend, Brenda Patea, of physical assault. He was issued a penalty order by a court in his home country and fined €450,000. Zverev denied the allegations and the charge, which led to an official court hearing.
The prosecutor told the court last Friday that Patea was pushed to a wall and strangled by Zverev. She had difficulties breathing and swallowing and suffered from throat pain for days.
Zverev's defense lawyers rebuffed the assertions as "unfounded" and, at the same time, "contradictory" and that the mother of their child was only after his money. They also insisted on holding the rest of the trial behind closed doors to protect the privacy of Zverev and Patea's three-year-old daughter, Mayla.
The court was expected to issue a directive on that request this week. But that won't be necessary because, as of Friday, June 7th, the case was "dropped" and "terminated" with the "consent" of the prosecutor's office, as explained in a statement from Zverev's lawyers.
Under the terms of the out-of-court settlement deal, Zverev has been ordered to pay €200,000, of which €150,000 will go to the state and €50,000 to charitable organizations.
An excerpt from the statement read, "The discontinuation does not constitute a finding of guilt or an admission of guilt. The legal presumption of innocence remains unaffected."
While no verdict was given by the court, Zverev was not convicted and is legally innocent and proclaimed himself as such during his post-match press conference after beating Ruud. He also warned reporters from bringing up the topic in future interviews.
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