Sex assault probe into Brazil’s Big Brother reject

Brazilian police are investigating allegations of sexual assault on its Big Brother reality TV show, a spokeswoman for Rio’s police said yesterday.

Inspector Antonio Ricardo Nunes said he questioned show participants a day after the programme announced that contestant Daniel Echaniz was being thrown out over suspicions of “gravely inadequate” behaviour.

Echaniz, a 31-year-old male model, was ejected after allegations emerged that he had engaged in sexual behaviour with contestant Monique Amin after she passed out following a party. Grainy TV footage shows the two in a bed, the leopard print sheets moving as Amin lies inert.

The incident has become the subject of intense discussion. Two opposing Twitter feeds have been created, one applauding his removal and the other advocating his return. Some have voiced suspicions that Ms Amin was not really unconscious. Others have even suggested the incident was her fault.

Echaniz’s disqualification has also sparked murmurs about racism, as the male model is of mixed race, while Amin is white.

The O Globo newspaper cited his mother saying: “Daniel is the victim of racism.”