A former participant of Spain’s Big Brother has been sentenced to 15 months in jail and fined £5,300 for sexually assaulting a fellow contestant who was unconscious after consuming alcohol.
Jose Maria Lopez committed the assault on Carlota Prado following a heavily intoxicated gathering while the reality TV show was being filmed in 2017. At the time, the victim was clearly under the influence of alcohol.
Despite the fact that the footage was never broadcast, the show’s producers faced criticism for their response to the incident. They confronted Prado with video evidence the following morning in the Big Brother confession room, causing her to break down.
Jose Maria Lopez faced trial in November, and court documents today, April 17, revealed that he has been sentenced to ’15 months of prison for a sexual abuse offence against Carlota P. A. that took place in the early hours of November 4, 2017′.
Additionally, the court has imposed a ‘four-year restraining order on him, during which he must have no contact with the victim. He is also required to pay her 6,000 euros (£5,300) in compensation, part of which is to be covered by the Spanish production company responsible for the show.
The judge stated that Lopez, driven by a sexual impulse, disregarded Prado’s intoxicated and later unconscious state and proceeded to remove her trousers and make sexual advances under the duvet. Despite the victim’s protests, he persisted in these acts until the producers intervened upon realizing her unconscious state, at which point Lopez was immediately removed from the show.
El Confidencial news website released the footage of the producers confronting Prado in the confession room, causing her to plead with them to turn it off. This incident only became public knowledge two years after the assault occurred.
The trial, initially scheduled for February 2022, was postponed to November 2022 due to Prado’s mental health difficulties, which prevented her from testifying.
