RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — European Olympic head Patrick Hickey of Ireland is spending the closing days of the Rio Games in a prison after his arrest in a ticket-scalping scandal, authorities said Friday.
The 71-year-old International Olympic Committee executive was denied bail after his legal team argued unsuccessfully that he was being detained illegally following his early-morning arrest Wednesday at his hotel.
Police only began questioning Hickey on Thursday because he was hospitalized for a day with chest pains following his arrest. Hickey has now been transferred to the sprawling Bangu prison complex in Rio, a police statement said.