Brazilian Judge Orders Ryan Lochte and James Feigen To Stay In Country

A Brazilian judge issued an order Wednesday to impede Ryan Lochte and James Feigen– two of the four American swimmers who stated they were robbed at gunpoint during the Olympics on Sunday– from leaving the country as suspicions emerged over their testimony of the incident.

Brazilian Judge Orders Ryan Lochte and James Feigen To Stay In Country

However, 12-time Olympic medalist Lochte had already left Brazil before the judge issued the order to seize his and Feigen’s passports, according to Mr. Lochte’s lawyer in the United Staes. It was not immediately known whether Mr. Feigen, 26, was still in Brazil.

Mr. Lochte, 32, had claimed that he, Mr. Feigen and two other American swimmers–Jack Conger, 21, and Gunnar Bentz, 20– were robbed at gunpoint early Sunday by men who identified themselves as police officers, though many believe they may have simply been posing as policeman. The four swimmers were caught in the incident after departing in a taxi from a party at Club France, a temporary venue set up to promote France during the Games.

Investigators have not yet discovered evidence corroborating the account, according to local news reports. Thus, the judge was prompted to issue the order.

“You can see the supposed victims arriving without signs of being physically or psychologically shaken, even joking amongst themselves,” Judge Keyla Blanc de Cnop said in a statement, referring to video of the swimmers arriving back at the Olympic Village after the party.

During the robbery, one of the bandits was said to have put a gun to Lochte’s forehead.

Police arrived Wednesday morning at the Olympic Village to take the swimmers’ passports and gather further testimony from them regarding the alleged robbery, US Olympic Committee spokesman Patrick Sandusky said.

Nevertheless, the athletes were not there.

“The swim team moved out of the village after their competition ended, so we were not able to make the athletes available,” Sandusky said in a statement, adding that the committee would “continue to cooperate with Brazilian authorities.”

 Sandusky added that due to security protocols, he could not disclose the swimmers’ whereabouts.

Mr. Lochte’s lawyer, Jeff Ostrow, rejected claims that his client and the three other swimmers may have fabricated details of the incident, calling such assertions efforts by Brazilian officials to deflect criticism of the many problems facing the Rio Games.

“The country has a dark cloud over it for a million and one reasons, from their economy to their crime to their management of the Olympics,” said Mr. Ostrow, who is based in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and attended the Games last week. “My client has cooperated thoroughly with the Brazilian authorities and stands behind his statement.”

 “He sat for a victim interview with the Brazilian Tourist Police, USOC Security, State Department, FBI, and anyone else that the Brazilian authorities requested to be present,” Ostrow also told CNN. “He left for the United States as he was planning to after he completed his events. He was not asked by the Brazilian authorities to remain in Brazil for further investigation.