Rio police say they have found NO evidence supporting Ryan Lochte's account of robbery at gunpoint — as Olympian says he 'didn't report incident for fear of getting in trouble'
- Cops in Rio say they have found little evidence to support Ryan Lochte's report that he was robbed at gunpoint
- Lochte at first didn't report the crime out of 'fear of getting in trouble'
- Authorities say they cannot locate their taxi driver or witnesses
- Lochte's attorney says 'this happened the way he described it'
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PUBLISHED: 18:48 EST, 16 August 2016 | UPDATED: 04:35 EST, 17 August 2016
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Police in Rio have found little evidence supporting Ryan Lochte's report that he was robbed at gunpoint alongside three of his teammates — as the swimmer says he didn't report the crime at first for fear of getting in trouble.
Local cops say the swimmers were unable to provide key details in police interviews and investigators cannot find their taxi driver or witnesses.
Lochte's attorney, Jeff Ostrow, said there was no question the robbery happened and that Lochte had 24-hour security hired after the incident. He hasn't been leaving his hotel room.
'This happened the way he described it,' Ostrow said.
'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',' Lochte told NBC's Billy Bush
Olympians Ryan Lochte, Jimmy Feigen (left) and Jack Conger (right) arrive back at the Olympic Village after their night out, as seen in security footage
Horseplay: Lochte was seen hitting Feigen over the head with his accreditation in an apparent attempt at humor
Security footage shows the Olympians arriving back at the athletes village about 6.56am.Locthe and Conger still appear to be wearing their watches
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The group did not call police, authorities said, and officers began investigating once they saw media reports in which Lochte's mother spoke about the robbery.
On Tuesday, Lochte said he at first didn't report the incident ' because we were afraid we'd get in trouble,'
USA Today reported.
Police interviewed Lochte and one other swimmer, who said they had been intoxicated and could not remember what type and color of taxi they rode in or where the robbery happened, the police official said.
The swimmers also could not say what time the events occurred.
Lochte shared a video on Snapchat in the early hours of Sunday morning at Club France
Lochte and the friends he was with at the nightclub also posted a video of the shoes they were wearing, along with the caption, '6k deep', which could be referring to the value of the shoes
Later in the day, Lochte described the incident to NBC's 'Today' show.
'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,' Lochte said.
'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 down on the ground.
'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 cellphone, he left my credentials.'
Golden boy" Lochte poses with his latest Olympic gold for a special Today show feature
ROBBERY TIMELINE - WHAT WE KNOW (AND WHAT WE DON'T KNOW)
Saturday, 11pm: Club France opens for special celebration
Sunday 2.25am: Lochte posts video of himself and Brazilian swimmer Thiago Pereira inside the club. They later leave the club, buy popcorn from a street vendor and go to a gas station to hail a cab
5am: Club France closes
6.56am: Security footage records the four arriving at the athletes' village - meaning that the robbery took place between 2.25am and some point before 6.53am.
Midday: First reports of Lochte's robbery - which the IOC denies happened
Monday: Lochte discusses the robbery with NBC's Billy Bush, and hours later the IOC apologizes for the security lapse. Police say they are hunting the taxi driver
Word of the robbery initially created confusion between Olympic and U.S. officials. An International Olympic Committee spokesman at first said reports of the robbery were 'absolutely not true,' then reversed himself, apologized and said he was relying on initial information from the USOC that was wrong.
Scott Leightman, a spokesman for USA Swimming, said the organization has no further comment and referred back to a statement issued Sunday by the USOC that briefly described the robbery and said that all four swimmers were safe and cooperating with authorities.
The incident got attention in part because of fears around street crime at the games.
Athletes and visitors have been told to use caution around the Olympics.
Street crime was a major concern of Olympic organizers, and Brazil deployed 85,000 soldiers and police to secure the games, twice as many as Britain used during the 2012 London Olympics.
Ryan Lochte checks his time in a men's 4x200-meter freestyle heat during the Rio Olympics
Authorities are treating the swimmers as victims and continuing to investigate, looking for security footage at the French hospitality house and nearby gas stations to build a timeline of the night.
Security footage from the athletes village obtained by police shows the swimmers arriving at 6:56 a.m. on Sunday morning, the official said.
Rio police commonly struggle to obtain information while investigating street crimes in Brazil as they encounter dozens of robberies a day in the violence-ridden city and lack the resources to get to the bottom of every case. Many such crimes don't even get reported by victims.
Fake police stops like the one reported by Lochte happen in Rio, but are not common in that area, police say. They are typically a bigger problem in the poorer cities where police are less present.
Lochte signed a statement on Monday confirming the facts he provided, his attorney said.
'Ryan was a hundred percent cooperative and fully available when they reached out to us for an interview,' Ostrow said.
He added: 'It doesn't behoove Ryan and anyone else to make up a story.'
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