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Half of Cuba’s National Volleyball Team Detained in Finland on Suspicion of Rape

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Six volleyball players from the Cuban men’s national team have been detained in Finland, facing allegations of aggravated rape. The squad is currently in Tampere to compete in the FIVB Volleyball World League 2016, and was the only team from Cuba to qualify for the upcoming Rio Olympics.

According to The Washington Posteight players were detained by the police last weekend, but two were released on Monday and are no longer suspects. The six remaining players will remain in custody while an investigation is underway. Osmany Uriarte, Abraham Gavilán, Ricardo Calvo, Rolando Cepeda, Luis Sosa, and Dariel Albo are currently being investigated.

Helsingin Sanomat, a Finnish newspaper, reports that the six players have claimed innocence. The rest of the team was scheduled to leave Finland on Monday, but now it is unknown if they traveled as planned in light of the detainment.