Spanish actor Gabriel Guevara was arrested over an alleged sexual assault charge during the ongoing Venice Film Festival, media reports said on Sunday.
He reportedly arrived in Lido, an island in the Venetian Lagoon and the host of the prestigious film festival, on September 1 (Friday).
He was meant to receive an award called the Filming Italy Prize on the sidelines of the festival, which has nothing to do with the fest itself, reported Variety.
According to reports, an international arrest warrant was issued against him for alleged sexual assault in France.
The Venice court of appeals will now have to rule on Guevara’s case before he can be extradited. The actor is currently in protective custody. Exact charges against him are not known.
Following his arrest, the Venice Film Festival issued a statement which was quoted as saying by Variety: "Following the news articles which have been emerging on various websites, regarding the Spanish actor Gabriel Guevara being arrested in Venice, the Biennale hereby clarifies that his presence in Venice was not linked to any events or productions related to the 80th Venice International Film Festival."
Gabriel is best known for his recurring role as Cristian "Cris" Miralles Haro in Skam España, the Spanish adaptation of Skam, and as Nick Leister in the Prime Video original film My Fault, based on the bestselling Wattpad novel series by Mercedes Ron.
