The two were taken off their flight from Brazil to the USA on Wednesday by local authorities amid an investigation into a reported robbery targeting Ryan Lochte and his teammates. Lochte also said that the gun was not actually held to his head.
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The Rio Olympics have been dogged by a series of security scares, including the robbery of two visiting government ministers, a mugger being shot dead outside the opening ceremony and stray bullets being fired into the equestrian center.
A Ralph Lauren spokesman said Thursday, “We are working closely with the USOC on the developments in Rio and are reviewing the situation”. The person was not seriously hurt, the newspaper added. Speaking on condition of anonymity because the investigation was ongoing, the official said the swimmers had tried to open a door at a gas station but it was jammed.
As Gunnar Bentz and Jack Conger are whisked through airport security and onto a plane, the saga remains the biggest spectacle outside of the Olympic gates.
On Friday, it was announced that U.S. Olympian James Feigen must pay $10,800 dollars because he allegedly lied about a robbery, The Associated Press reports.
Now that he’s safely back in the United States, shopping and no doubt working on a third version of the story while the teammates he left behind are facing Rio officials’ wrath, he sounds a lot more stupid than courageous.
“They were released by local authorities with the understanding that they would continue their discussions about the incident on Thursday”.
None of the swimmers face charges, the source said. Brazilian officials escorted Bentz and Conger from their airplane Wednesday night for further questioning and have since been released. He walks away and then returns and makes a phone call. Lochte also said the swimmers didn’t initially tell U.S. Olympic officials what happened because they were afraid they’d get in trouble. He had already given testimony to Brazilian police before leaving the country.
Veloso said there was no robbery as described by the swimmers and that investigations instead revealed that the swimmers’ taxi had pulled into the station where they behaved in a hot-tempered way and damaged the station’s bathroom. They got down on the ground. “He took our money, he took my wallet – he left my cell phone, he left my credentials”. Steve Lochte said. “It’s just ridiculous”.
“I don’t think they’ll go to jail”, Summers said.
Feigen was prevented from leaving Rio on Wednesday after Lochte’s story about being robbed at gunpoint by men posing as police began to unravel under scrutiny from investigators. On Wednesday, police issued an appeal for the taxi driver to come forward. The incident occurred early Sunday morning as the athletes headed back to the Olympic village from a party after the final swimming competition.
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While some details in the official account of the story changed Thursday – police first said no guns were involved, then backtracked and said two guards pointed weapons at the swimmers – security video confirmed the athletes vandalized parts of the gas station, leading to an encounter with station employees.
