The lawyer for the man at the center of a social media firestorm regarding an alleged sexual attack on a Gasparilla parade-goer is releasing new documents claiming his client is innocent.
Attorney Paul Sisco sent ABC Action News a statement, along with the affidavit.
Sisco said this his client, “can say unequivocally that he was not involved in any way in this incident. He has voluntarily sworn out an affidavit under oath, and today thoroughly passed a polygraph test administered by a former law enforcement expert who worked decades for prosecution agencies.”
Rina Alvarez posted about the incident on Facebook. It didn’t take long for her post to go viral. ABC Action News is not identifying the man Alvarez identified on social media because he is not charged with a crime.
Woman says man dressed as pirate groped her at Gasparilla parade
Sisco says that his client was “misidentified.”
The day after Gasparilla, Sisco sent screen grabs of a Facebook Messenger conversation between his client and Alvarez. The message from his client stated, “The photo of the guy pulling away from you is not me. I do not have long hair, and I did not have a wig on. And that is not my hat. This thread is going all over the internet and causing me a lot of harm, can you please take this down until we speak? And please call me as soon as you can.”
The post is still on Alvarez’s page. She also added an update stating, “in light of all of the stories that have been shared with me in Messenger, if anyone wants to tell their story I can get you in contact with the detectives I just spoke with. Any information will help.”
During our interview with Alvarez, she said she is not identifying the wrong man.
“He said it wasn’t him,” Alvarez said. “I have no doubt that it was. And the other people that were around me that made statements, they saw him; it was him.”
The incident is still under investigation by Tampa police.
