GETS WORSE

Rio Police: U.S. Swimmers Weren’t Robbed

Lochte and crew tried to exit scene before police arrived.

Ryan Lochte and three of his U.S. Olympic swimming teammates were not robbed at gunpoint, Brazilian police during a Thursday afternoon press conference. According to Civil Police Chief Fernando Veloso, not only were the swimmers not robbed—per their initial claim—but they vandalized a Rio gas-station bathroom and tried to leave the scene before police arrived. While Lochte and James Feigen have already left Brazil altogether, their teammates Jack Conger and Gunnar Bentz were pulled off a plane in Rio on Thursday in order to be held in the country as the police continue their investigation into the incident. Reports allege that the swimmers had vandalized the gas-station bathroom and were confronted by armed security guards demanding they pay for the damages. Surveillance footage does not show any gun-related incidents, but does confirm that—despite Lochte’s earliest claims—the swimmers were not pulled over and removed from a cab at gunpoint.