Alexander Zverev’s lawyer has dismissed all assault charges against the tennis player in a trial that began in Berlin on Friday while he was playing at the French Open grand slam.
The Olympic champion from Germany is appealing against a €450,000 ($487,870) fine for assault.
Lawyer Alfred Dierlamm said the allegations made by his ex-girlfriend Brenda Patea are fictitious. The complaint, filed about a year and a half after the alleged incident in May 2020, was closely related to a custody dispute over their daughter, Dierlamm said.
Zverev’s defense: no signs of fighting and injuries
The defense lawyer says photos, videos and witness statements from the days after the alleged incident, which allegedly involved a brief strangulation, showed that there were no visible injuries.
“There were no signs of disharmony or fighting and no marks of strangulation, and that was two days after the alleged incident,” Dierlamm said, adding that the then-couple went out for dinner with Zverev’s mother in Hamburg in good spirits.
According to the indictment, which is based on the statements of Zverev’s ex-girlfriend Patea, the player allegedly pushed her against the wall during an argument in May 2020 and strangled her in the hallway of her rented Airbnb flat in Berlin.
She then suffered from shortness of breath and severe pain, the prosecutor said. The pain and swallowing problems persisted for several days.
A criminal order was issued against Zverev without trial, according to which he had to pay a fine of €450,000 for assault.
Dierlamm accuses Patea, a co-plaintiff and witness in the trial, of using the relationship with Zverev to grow her social media following and living a jet-set lifestyle with “unlimited shopping, trendy parties and expensive restaurants.”
Patea’s lawyer says Zverev’s defense wants to ‘ruin’ ex-girlfriend
Patea’s lawyer, meanwhile, said his client is under pressure and that Zverev’s defense wants to “exhaust, ruin and exert psychological pressure” on her.
“They threaten her. (…) The goal is to undermine her credibility,” said lawyer Michael Nitschke, emphasizing that the accusation that Patea was only interested in money was untrue.
“She felt abandoned, she wanted justice,” he said. However, a lengthy process like this costs a lot of money and “at some point she will reach the end of her financial resources.”
Zverev is currently competing in the French Open in Paris and did not appear in court as his presence is not required. A total of ten trial days have been planned so far.
