Brazil Dismisses Charges Against Ryan Lochte

SAO PAULO, Brazil — On Friday, a Brazilian court dismissed their criminal charge against U.S. Olympic swimmer Ryan Lochte, who was accused by the Brazilian government of filing a false report and making up that he was robbed at gunpoint in their country last summer during the 2016 Olympics.

"We are pleased that the court has finally dismissed the criminal prosecution against Mr. Lochte, while also acknowledging that he committed no crime while in Brazil. We are hopeful that the prosecution accepts the court's decision so that this story can finally be put to rest," Lochte's attorney, Jeff Ostrow, told the Associated Press on Saturday.

After competing in the 2016 summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Lochte famously told NBC that he and three other U.S. swimmers, Jack Conger, Gunnar Bentz and Jimmy Feigen, were robbed at gunpoint in a taxi by men with police badges on Aug. 15, as they returned to Olympic Village from a party.

The Brazilian government denied the allegation and instead accused Lochte of filing a false report, a crime punishable by up to 18 months in prison in Brazil. Brazilian police also said Lochte and the other U.S. swimmers vandalized a gas station and stole a sign.

Surveillance camera video released of the incident was unclear. It did show Lochte and the others getting into a confrontation with the gas station's security guards. Their cab had stopped there to let them use the restroom.

Lochte later acknowledged he'd been drinking and that led to the escalated incident.

Lochte was suspended for 10 months from the U.S. national swim team for the incident, which prevented him from qualifying for the world championships, which begin later this month. His suspension ended June 30.

"It's been a long suspension but it's over," he tweeted July 1. "I've learned and became a better man from it."

Lochte's first child, a son named Caiden, was born last month.

Photo: Ryan Lochte/3 August 2015/Source: Own work/Author: Chan-Fan/Wikimedia Commons