Sport: Ex-Barcelona and Brazil star Ronaldinho released from Paraguay prison after five months

Ex-Barcelona and Brazil star Ronaldinho released from Paraguay prison after five months

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Ronaldinho and his brother, Roberto de Assis, have been released from prison in Paraguay after a judge formally accepted a plea deal the defence team agreed upon earlier this month.

The former Barcelona forward and his brother were arrested in March for entering the country with false passports and, a month later, were placed under house arrest at a luxury hotel in the country's capital, Asuncion, after paying bail of $800,000 each.

"The precautionary measure of arrest is lifted. There are no more restrictions placed by Paraguayan justice," Judge Gustavo Amarilla told the court.

Ronaldinho, who will leave Paraguay on Tuesday, told local authorities in a hearing that the passports were a gift from a Brazilian businessman, Wilmondes Sousa Lira, who was also jailed.

Ronaldinho and his brother faced up to five years in jail if convicted.

The terms of the agreement include a guilty plea from the two brothers for entering Paraguay with fake passports and fines of $90,000 and $110,000, respectively, for Ronaldinho and Roberto.

Roberto agreed to a criminal record in Paraguay, but Ronaldinho's record will be clean there.

The plea deal also stipulates that Ronaldinho can leave Brazil at any time, though he must tell Paraguayan officials how long he will be away. Roberto, however, will not be permitted to leave Brazil for two years.

Roberto must present himself to a federal judge in Brazil every four months for a period of two years.