Swimmer Ryan Lochte was reportedly robbed at gunpoint in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on Sunday, August 14.
He was on his way back to Olympic Village with three members of U.S Olympic swimming team (Gunnar Bentz, Jack Conger, and Jimmy Feigen), when the incident happened.
Re-counting the violence to Today Show, he said: ‘We got pulled over, in the taxi, and these guys came out with a badge, a police badge, no lights, no nothing, just a police badge, and they pulled us over.
‘They pulled out their guns, they told the other swimmers to get down on the ground – they got down on the ground. I refused. I was like, ‘We didn’t do anything wrong, so I’m not getting on the ground’.’
Ryan who won his 12th Olympics medal at the ongoing tournament is the second most decorated male Olympic swimmer of all time behind associate, Michael Phelps.
He continued: ‘And then the guy pulled out his gun, he cocked it, put it to my forehead and he said, ‘Get down’, and I put my hands up, I was like, ‘Whatever’. He took our money, he took my wallet. He left my cell phone, he left my credentials.’
A spokesperson for United States Olympic Committee (USOC) Patrick Sandusky later confirmed the report in a statement: ‘According to four members of the U.S. Olympic swimming team (Gunnar Bentz, Jack Conger, Jimmy Feigen and Ryan Lochte), they left France House early Sunday morning in a taxi headed for the Olympic Village. Their taxi was stopped by individuals posing as armed police officers who demanded the athletes’ money and other personal belongings. All four athletes are safe and cooperating with authorities.’
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