Overview
- Agostina Páez, 29, was moved from an apartment under electronic monitoring to a police station in Rio de Janeiro following the preventive detention order, with a possible transfer to the Bangu penitentiary complex.
- She is accused of injúria racial stemming from a Jan. 14 incident at an Ipanema bar captured on video, an offense punishable by two to five years in prison that generally does not permit release on bail.
- The court granted prosecutors’ request after pointing to her status as a foreign tourist and concerns about potential intimidation of victims and witnesses.
- Prior to the order, Páez faced passport seizure, a ban on leaving Brazil, and an ankle monitor; her defense calls the move disproportionate, argues the gestures were private joking, and cites new footage of a waiter making obscene gestures toward her.
- Her legal team is pursuing habeas corpus as the Argentine consulate follows the case, and Páez posted a video saying she is desperate and "dead of fear."