A woman who was sexually assaulted by Spanish footballer Hugo Mallo while working as a mascot has broken her silence on the incident.
Carme Coma, who worked for Espanyol as mascot Periquita, was groped by Mallo in 2019 when he was playing for Celta Vigo.
Mallo, who now plays for Aris in Greece, was found guilty of assault, with the judge fining him £5,100, while he will have to pay another £840 in compensation.
It was ruled that Mallo put his hand inside Coma’s parakeet costume and touched her chest.
The judge stated that Mallo had acted on his sexual desire and undermined Coma’s sexual intimacy.
Carme Coma, who was sexually assaulted by Spanish footballer Hugo Mallo while working as a mascot for Espanyol, has broken her silence on the incident
Mallo (pictured) was found guilty of sexual assault of Coma during an incident in 2019
Coma stated that she doesn’t want financial compensation but wants justice to be done.
As reported by Spanish outlet Sport, Coma said: ‘I did not want any financial compensation, but rather that justice be done. I have my job, I earn my living honestly and I didn’t want money but justice.
‘Women who are victims of abuse always have to give up financial compensation because we are labeled opportunists.’
Mallo has announced that he will appeal the decision. He said that he greeted the players and mascots in a normal manner and that he did not know the gender of the person in the costume.
Two Espanyol mascots waited at the end of the line to greet the Celta Vigo players, with one in a ‘male’ parakeet costume and the other in a “female” costume.
Coma is believed to have given up her role at the club in 2021, having previously worked as Periquita since 2006.
The judge at Criminal Court 19 in Barcelona ruled: ‘The accused, with the intention of satisfying his libidinous desire and of undermining the sexual indemnity of the same, put his hands under the costume and touched her breasts , forcing Ana to step back and push the accused away with her right hand.
In her victim statement, Coma (who is referred to as ‘Ana’) said that Mallo had ‘grabbed her breasts’ after reaching under her mascot suit.
Footage from a 2019 fixture shows Mallo quickly greeting the male parakeet (left) before lingering next to Periquita (right)
‘When Hugo Mallo arrived (to greet) the mascots, he gave his hand to the (male) parakeet (Periquito) as is usually done, but when he reached Ms. Ana, who at that time was playing the role of the (female) parakeet, he introduced his hands under the costume and touched her breasts,’ stated the victim’s initial complaint to the Catalonian police, Mossos d’Esquadra – made the day after the fixture in question.
‘According to the declarant, he grabbed her breasts with his hands and began to make movements.’