A Moroccan boxer has been arrested and jailed in Rio de Janeiro after an allegation of attempted rape was made against him, just one day before he was due to fight at the Olympic Games. 
 
 Hassan Saada, 22, was arrested by police on Friday morning after allegations of sexual assault were made against him by two Brazilian women who work in the Olympic Village in Barra da Tijuca as waitresses. The attacks were alleged to have taken place on Wednesday, according to information given by the two women in their statements. 
 
 Police have confirmed that Saada will be jailed for 15 days while they conduct a rape investigation, although suspects can be held for longer under Brazilian law while a case is investigated. 
 
 The lightweight boxer was due to compete on Saturday against Mehmet Nadir Unal of Turkey in the preliminary rounds, although he was not expected to challenge for medals. Saada will no longer compete at the Rio Olympic Games. 
 
 Saada was taken to a police station near the Maracana Stadium, where the Olympic Games opening ceremony takes place on Friday evening, where he was stripped of his Olympic competitor status. Saada will be transferred on Friday to a remand prison in the Polinter district of Rio de Janeiro, where police will formally question him as part of the investigation. 
 
 Hassan Saada was due to fight in the preliminary lightweight round on Saturday at Rio 2016 (Getty) 
 
 A local judge, Larissa Nunes Saly, ruled that Saada should be held in police custody for 15 days while the case is investigated. 
 
 Police said that Saada is accused attacking the two Olympic Village workers after inviting one of them to pose for a photograph with him. It is also claimed that he asked one of the women if she had a social media profile. 
 
 Police said Saada then pushed the woman up against a wall and trying to kiss her. 
 
 The Moroccan is also accused of groping the breasts of the second woman and making sexually-graphic gestures towards her, and offering her money to perform a sexual act on him. 
 
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 Judge Nunes Saly has contacted the Moroccan Ambassador about the allegations made against Saada, and told Brazilian newspaper O Globo: “It has been necessary to arrest Hassan Saada to investigate the allegations against him. If he was at liberty there would be a risk that he could interfere with witnesses. And there is a risk that Hassan Saada could reoffend.” 
 
 Moroccan newspaper Le Matin reports that Saada was involved in a boycott threat along with two other Moroccan competitors to get a bigger pay reward for competing at the Rio Olympics. 

 Image copyright AFP Image caption Hassan Saada was due to fight on Saturday 
 
 A Moroccan boxer has been arrested by Brazilian police over allegations of sexually assaulting two female cleaners in the Rio de Janeiro Olympic village. 
 
 Hassan Saada, 22, was held on suspicion of committing the assaults on Wednesday, a police statement said. 
 
 The boxer, who fights in the light-heavyweight category, was due to take part in his first bout on Saturday. 
 
 A Brazilian judge has ordered he be detained for 15 days, pending an investigation, media reports said. 
 
 His detention could mean Saada is unable to take part in the Games. 
 
 Brazilian media reports (in Portuguese) quoted police as saying the boxer had pushed one of the maids against a wall, pressing her with his thighs, and tried to kiss her. 
 
 He is accused of squeezing the breast of the second maid and making obscene hand gestures to her. 
 
 There has been no immediate comment from Saada or Moroccan Olympic officials. 
 
 The judge, Larissa Nunes Saly, said the boxer must remain in detention while the allegations were investigated because of the risks he could reoffend or try to flee the country. 
 
 The 2016 Olympic Games officially start in Rio on Friday with the opening ceremony at the Maracana Stadium. 
 
 Athletes from 206 nations and a refugee team are in Brazil to compete in 28 sports. They will be watched by a global audience of billions. 
 
 The build-up has been dominated by a Russian doping scandal, the Zika virus and issues with the city's security, infrastructure and venues. 

 RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — A Moroccan Olympic boxer was arrested Friday on allegations he sexually assaulted two Brazilian women. 
 
 Police said they arrested Hassan Saada for possible assaults Wednesday on the two housekeepers in the Olympic Village. 
 
 Chief investigator Carolina Salomao said the women filed a report this week, saying the 22-year-old boxer had asked them to go to his room, then restrained and fondled them. 
 
 "They were cleaning the room right across his, and he assaulted them. He groped the breast of one of them and touched the other woman's thigh. They were able to get out," Salomao told reporters. 
 
 The detective said Saada shared the room with two other athletes, but was alone at the time of the alleged assault. 
 
 Saada will be jailed for 15 days while they investigate. Under Brazilian law, suspects can be held for a long period while a case is examined. 
 
 Police originally said in a statement the man had raped the housekeepers, but the investigator said it was a sexual assault. It's not clear what charges he is facing. 
 
 Olympic organizers said they are aware of the case and investigation. 
 
 Saada, a light heavyweight boxer, was scheduled to fight in the preliminary rounds Saturday against Mehmet Nadir of Turkey. Saada was not predicted to be a medal contender. 
 
 Calls and email messages left with the Moroccan Embassy in Rio de Janeiro were not immediately returned.
– Morocco's Hassan Saada was set to square off in the boxing ring against a Turkish competitor at the Olympics on Saturday, but instead he'll be in a Rio jail. The 22-year-old athlete was arrested Friday morning at the Olympic Village on charges that he sexually assaulted two maids (some reports have them listed as waitresses), USA Today reports. The chief investigator in the case told reporters the women filed a report that alleged he restrained and fondled them after asking them to come to his room Wednesday, the AP reports. The BBC cites local media that quoted police as saying Saada is accused of shoving one woman against the wall and trying to kiss her; he's alleged to have groped the breast of the second woman and made obscene hand gestures. Police say he lured them over by asking them to pose for a picture with him, per the Independent, which notes his Olympic eligibility has been withdrawn. Brazilian law allows a suspect to be held "for a long period" during a crime investigation, adds AP.