First something completely unrelated:
Don’t forget that The Egypt Salsa Congress Full Pass giveaway is still open for entry. The winner will be announced in September so don’t miss out on your chance to go for free!
——
The one thing I realized quickly after the news about Alex da Silva broke is that follow up news was hard to come by. His release was hardly reported and more info about the case was really almost impossible to find. It seemed like nobody cared what the outcome of the case was, they just wanted the quick attention by publishing the bad news.
Edie has interviewed Alex to give him a chance to tell his side of the story as, like she puts it, no matter how thin you slice it there are always two sides.
Here is her interview with Alex da Silva that was published in her newsletter and on her site (http://www.salsafreak.com):
What if…
The Story of Alex da Silva www.AlexdaSilva.com
By Edie, The Salsa FREAK!!
What if…
What if you went on a few dates with someone from a small town and after the third date, they asked to borrow several thousand dollars from you?
What if…
…they threaten to file rape charges against you if you refused to loan them the money?
What if…
…they followed through with rape charges against you without your knowledge?
What if…
…a couple years later, the exact same thing happened again with another person from the same small town as the first?
What if…
… news of unproven “rape charges” against you started spreading all over the internet like wildfire?
What would you do? What could you do? How can you stop the speed of Internet news?
Have you ever heard the saying, “No matter how thin you slice it, there are always two sides to every story.” ?
This is the story that no one heard – that somehow never reached the world internet online waves. This is the story of what could happen to YOU. It could happen to ANYONE – especially if you are famous and in the limelight – in ANY business, not just entertainment.
This is the story of world famous choreographer / performer Alex da Silva. So far, what the entire world has been told is just one side of the story – especially online. What about the other side of the story? Why did the news agencies ever mention his side of the story? The internet and news agencies only told one side of the story – Alex the rapist. Two days later, all the charges were dropped and he went back to good ‘ole Alex – but did anyone neither care nor even dare talk about THAT?
Everyone loves dirty laundry. If the accused comes clean, the news drops the story faster than a bad habit. NOTHING is said, mentioned, nor reported… silence. Conversations stop and news agencies pretend it never happened. And what about the lingering stories all over the internet? They stay on the servers for weeks, months, and even years. Dropped charges, false accusations, and false imprisonment never accompany the initial stories told. Embellished ongoing accusations and rumors continue to spread online for years to come.
This is the story of Alex da Silva; World Famous Choreographer, performer, and instructor. Alex was chosen to choreograph and work with dancers and producers on the popular television show “So You Think You Can Dance”. He is one of the most successful Salsa dancers in the industry. His residence is surrounded by some of the most famous Hollywood movie stars in Los Angeles. Films, movies, and television is commonplace for him as he not only has appeared on various television commercials and movies but has also trained some of the most famous movie stars in the world. He has several international competition titles under his belt, and for the past twenty years has taught Salsa to some of the best competitive dancers in the world. Love him or hate him, like it or not, Alex da Silva has earned his rank as one of the most prominent and famous Salsa dancers in the world.
Why, why, WHY???
I found it interesting, that his bail was posted at 3.8 million dollars – higher than OJ Simpson’s case. Why?
I found it interesting that ALL the charges were immediately dropped on his first and only court date – but that fact was never announced in the news, nor online… Why?
I found it interesting that Alex never paid a single cent of bail money – but that fact was never published online … Why?
That is why I was not surprised when all the charges were dropped and he was released with no fines nor charges. “It was all about the money” he said. Here is his story…
Edie,TSF
So Alex. What happened?
Alex:
In 2003 I met this woman at the Mayan nightclub on a Saturday night. We danced a bit and she wanted to hang out for the rest of the weekend. She came over to my house at 10am, had breakfast, lunch, then we went dancing again, and then went to movies. She left my house at 3am. After that I left town, came back, and was too busy to call her. She started calling me but our conversations became strange. Then she asked for $20,000.
Naturally I refused to give her any money –Blackmail is in not an option! 2 weeks later she accused me of rape. Of course I denied everything, and next a undercover detective began to inquire about my personal life. He came to all my classes, and monitored my house. After the accusations were dropped, we had a talk and he warned me about who I get involved with. If you are in the limelight, there are a lot of women out there that will definitely try to get money from you in any way possible.
I can’t account for 2004,and 2005. Those accusations turned out to be false as well.
Six years later in 2009, I met another person from the same small town on the island, (possibly a friend of the first). We met at the Edge dance studio and later met at the Mayan, and had consentual sex on three separate occasions. Then on my birthday, she asked to borrow $5000 . I had said “we do not have that kind of relationship” On Saturday which is the day after my birthday, she came to my class, I made an announcement that it was my birthday all weekend and that I will be performing a Salsa show that night at the Hollywood Park Casino. She told me she wanted to come over and “be my birthday present.”
She came over and started acting really strange. So on this day all these things began to accumulate. Like can I borrow $5000, she asked who I was seeing and finally after saying she was my birthday present, she changed her mind and we did not do what we usually do, if you know what I mean. So that was the end of our liason. Then she accused me of raping her. I am so lucky we did not have sex that day. She thought I would settle out of court like Cobey Bryan did.
When I was in jail over the weekend, my bail was set at 3.8 million bail – higher than all 30 guys put together with me in that cell. It was a bail set higher than Michael Jackson’s bail. The police never took my passport, my driver’s license – nothing. I was in jail for only three days.
I was arrested on Saturday and I was out on Tuesday. The same day as my court date. I did not even see the judge due to insufficient evidence.
Edie,TSF:
So what is the status of your case now?
Alex:
There is no case..
Edie,TSF:
People are concerned about the charges if you raping a “minor”… can you explain that?
Alex:
There was never charge of a rape of a minor – at all. Someone that didn’t like me must have started that rumor. This story was not in any of the news nor newspapers. There are a lot of haters in this world. There are people who like me, and hate me. Once the hater’s fire starts, it’s copycat all over the internet – the rumors just seem to spread and get worse.
Alex:
One of the girls that accused me of rape sent me a text message just a few days ago, “Alex, how are you? I hope everything is going well with you.” I saved it and informed my attorney.. Would you send your “rapist” a pleasant text message?
Edie,TSF
Did you know these women for many years prior to their accusations?
Alex:
Not at all. I just met them, one asked me to show them around LA since it was her first time to the city. The other came and took my class.
Edie,TSF
Where they U.S. citizens?
Alex:
Yes.
Edie,TSF
Why do you think women pry on you like this?
Alex:
I meet a lot of women, but I never thought this would happen to me.
I only see this kind of stuff in movies. Once I was arrested, I kept thinking, “Wow this is not happening… how am I in here with all these real criminals?”
A lot of women will say good things about me. There are a lot of haters in the Salsa scene. Most of the haters are men. After I did the show “Mr. Smooth”, every guywanted to be me, or hated me even more.
Edie,TSF
How has this affected your relationship with your dance partner Alian?
Alex:
It brought us even closer together because she knows what kind of person I am.
For two months prior to my nightmare, we had a rocky time in our relationship so we took a break. During all the madness I told her everything. She loves me even more for opening up and telling her the truth. What happened to me could have happened to anyone. I was the one with the nightmare.
Edie,TSF
Are you going to change the way you approach students/women/ etc?
Alex:
Yes. I think I will exercise more caution and qualify the people I teach. I still would like to offer privacy to my students. This is the best way to teach one on one. I will scrutinize my new students in the future. I can’t change my whole life because of two bad apples.
I know the truth, and I don’t even know who the others are, it’s all a bunch of lies, and people just want to bring me down. If something like that really happened, then they should have gone to the police that night, or the same day, but it was never that way. I have too much to lose. I don’t need that type of thing in my life. Edie, you see me all over the world, you see how people react to men like us. I’m not bad looking, I’m definitely not desperate, and when you’re a high-profile person, the news and EVERYONE will know about it.
Edie,TSF
To what extent has this damaged your career? Have you been asked to leave the So you Think You Can Dance show?
Alex:
I spoke to the producers of the show. They like me and will be hiring me back if not this year, then the next.
It’s about the Fox network. To work for them is very difficult. Yes, my name is tarnished, but I will clear my name again. The truth will come out.
Edie,TSF
What do you plan on doing to reverse the damages, if they can be?
Alex:
We are taking steps, but all that is under wraps at the moment. My head is up, and I will never look down nor look behind. I will always keep moving and looking forward because I know the truth in my heart. Some of the women who tried to accuse me of this know the truth as well.
Edie,TSF
What have you learned about your friends in this business?
Alex:
In times like these, you really know who your friends are. I had a lot of support from people whom I thought were my enemies. They came up to me and told me they were glad to see me. I didn’t know what to expect. When you go to online web forums, you don’t know who wrote what. When I shake someone’s hand I always look into their eyes, and see if they are genuine. When they aren’t, those are the ones you have to worry about. The internet is explosive, within a matter of seconds information flies all over the world. Good or bad. When it’s bad, it’s magnified one hundred times worse than it really is.
Edie,TSF:
If you had a chance to un-do the past, what would you have done differently?
Alex:
I woiuld not have gotten involved with people like that again.
Edie,TSF
What did you learn from this? What has this taught you?
I have to think twice about trusting people in life. I found out who my friends are from all of this. I wouldn’t have wished this on my worst enemy. This was the real deal. I was in there with real criminals, and I was innocent.
Edie,TSF:
What are some of your goals for the future?
Alex:
I’m a dancer, and I love to dance, and I am never going to stop dancing. My new Salsa show with my dance partner and others will be a satire of the situation that happened to me. Once you see the story on stage, it will it make you think, and blow your mind.
Alex and his dance partner Alien will premier their new Salsa show at the Key Club on Sunset Blvd in West Hollywood June 24 The event is called Carnaval. Then he is off to Hamurg Germany for the Hamburg Salsa Congress in Europe, July 15th – 20th, 2009.
Alex can be reached at www.AlexDaSilva.com
SEO Powered by Platinum SEO from Techblissonline
translated in german here: http://www.salsa-amt.de/wordpress/2009/07/01/interview-mit-alex-da-silva-von-edie-the-salsa-freak/
It’s spelled Kobe Bryant…dummies.
I understand how you would mispell his name, it’s not like his name is on the internet, on the cover of magazines, billboards all over Los Angeles, newspapers, and television 10 billion times. I illuminate this small issue as an indication of how intelligent I think this article is and it’s author. Also, Kobe Bryant is world famous not Alex Desilva…opps mispelled his name didn’t I. Dummies!
Actually, I couldn’t say which one of the 2 is more famous world wide.
I’m pretty sure that Kobe Bryant is better known in the US. However, outside of the US you are more likely to see SYTYCD than a basketball game. This makes it likely that in many countries Alex is better known than Kobe.
OOOH Please!!! Alex De Silva better known than Kobe Bryant?! That’s only in your dreams. How can you say something like that. Probably only in your little world, the Salsa world, ( I like to dance salsa)). I’ve travel all over the world for my work by the way and Never heard of Alex De Silva in the big circles. But Kobe Bryant is known and recognize worldwide. He’s done big shows. Interviewers all over the world pay millions of dollars to get him on their shows, etc.
Don’t get me wrong I have nothing against this guy. (innocent until proven guilty, right?) but don’t write something, I believe, you don’t even believe.
I too have traveled and pretty far and wide and in my experience Kobe Bryant is not as well known as you seem to think. Say his name around here and people will look at you as if you have just said something to them in Chinese.
I’m not saying you wouldn’t get a similar reaction if you said ‘Alex Da Silva’ (unless you were talking about the football/soccer player) but I did want to put into perspective that, unlike in the US, Kobe Bryant is not a household name all around the world either.
After all, everything is relative. Say “Ernesto Hoost” in Japan and lots of people will know who you’re talking about. Say it in the Netherlands and even though he is dutch (and lives in the Netherlands) a lot of people will have no idea who you’re talking about.
I agree terrible writing and grammar, but he’s a salsa instructor without a college education (I’m assuming). Now re the issue, there are 4 women making accusations here. I might blow off one or two based on the number of women he beds, but there’s a pattern now. It will be interesting to see how all this plays out.
why would it matter that it’s 4 woman accusing him & not one or two? when women falsely accuse men…they get off scott free!!! they have NOTHING to lose. hell, they even get to keep their names out of the press! i’ve NEVER understood this. so, if there was TWENTY women making accusations about this guy (for some pay off or revenge tactic)–and it all turned out to be false it wouldn’t surprise me.
we have to do something about these laws that allow women to have the upper hand…
It is true that it doesn’t really matter whether it’s 2, 4 or 20 women that accuse somebody. However, the likelihood of there being truth to an accusation usually increases as the number of people that voice the same accusation goes up.
Like Susan I think it will be interesting to see how it goes.
if the people accusing (in this case women who have nothing to lose by potentially sending a man to prison for a crime he didn’t commit…for a pay out) then the supposed likelihood of truth means NOTHING.
and if we’re really going to play the numbers game….if he’s really bedding all these women, then 4 accusers (out of what…50, 100 willing partners) is not enough to cause suspicion anyway.
yes the trial should be interesting…but if he really didn’t do it, then i sincerely hope that da silva DOESN’T pull a kobe bryant. sue those 4 bitches for defamation of character, perjury, conspiracy, etc, etc… and PLEASE PRINT THEIR NAMES IN THE PRESS. so that THEY can face the same public scrutiny. it’s only fair in this supposed “equal rights” society that feminists claim they want…
Agreed. Somehow I don’t think he will settle if he is innocent but then, you never know.
Time will tell
Why would you assume that he has no college education based only on the fact that he’s a salsa instructor? Sorry….that ignorance kept me from reading the rest of that post.
All it takes is to settle out of court, and that’s the truth. Hgh profile celebrities, dance instructors, whomever it may be, have the money to “get out of jail free” card. Not until the awful truth of being caught red handed will there ever be justice. OJ was later brought to justice.
Instead of qualifying students, qualify yourself. Crossing the teacher/student boundry of confidence, trust and respect is inexcusable regardless of age, urge or circumstance.
I completely agree. There is no excuse for crossing that line.
I think to better protect himself is to install security cameras, and let people know that are taking the class that they are being ‘filmed’ to protect himself from false accusations. Can’t dispute a camera!
The allegation is …. the women were lured into the bedroom. Are you advocating cameras all over the home, including the bedroom? Let’s face it. Alex was stupid for exposing himself and his career to true or false charges. And, the women who thought they could get free salsa lessons over a bachelor’s home or in his bedroom were stupid too.
Alex ain’t no rapist – I was in his classes for several years. Those girls were gold diggers chasing him. And fyi – only people in CA know who Kobe Bryant is, as said earlier – if you say his name outside CA he isn’t known. I hope Alex is let out soon because he is not a rapist and those girls are liars.
This “story” is so bogus. I took classes taught by Alex. The men in the class told me repeatedly that the other young women in the class were constantly complaining that he was hitting on them. That he would get their phone numbers and not leave them alone. This guy is in hot water and so he’s figured out a “story”. Well let him tell it in court.
Sorry, but Kobe Bryant, thanks to US Gold-winning team and a variety of endorsements as well as winning 4 NBA titles is big world wide. Kobe lived in Italy and he’s known all over Europe. Maybe in a small, communist village in China people do not know him, but anyone who knows anything about American culture knows him. I can tell most of you aren’t even basketball fans and you all know him, and it is not just a California thing. My bad for going on a rant, but I can tell most of you are not sports fans, so you probably already stop reading this post.
In regards to Alex, many of you have made good points. He did cross the line with the teacher-student breach. I’ve had countless female friends who complained to me that he is calling them all the time or just make them feel uncomfortable. And the sad thing is, these girls probably would have been great salsa dancers. However, Alex gave them a lasting first impression that made them walk away from it all. As a guy, we all love women, but there is a time and place for romance, and we have to use self-control. Now, once you talk about rape, that is taking everything to a whole new level. It will be very interesting to see what happens. I do believe in our justice system, so I believe the final outcome would be true and fair. He does not have enough money to buy people off.
Quick poll on the dance floor yesterday… out of 10 of my dance partners 0 knew who Kobe is. Last time I checked Rotterdam is not a small communist village in China buthome to one of the largest ports in the world. But then, it really isn’t relevant
I agree that it will be very interesting to see what happens and I hope that, regardless of the outcome, justice will prevail. I do see some problems there though, rape is notoriously hard to prove so he could be guilty but not be convicted because there is not enough evidence to remove reasonable doubt. On the other hand, he could be innocent but his reputation will have suffered regardless and can probably not be restored fully.
You’re very right about rape being hard to prove. However, 4 stories that are all similar and if they can prove these girls did not know each other, and they can link them with being in Alex’s house; that could help the prosecution. It would be a circumstantial case based upon testimonies and if convincted, it would be of lesser charges – sexual assault or something like that.
The damage is already done to his reputation, even if he is proven innocent. Being called a ’serial rapist’ on TV has a way of doing that, and if he does get off, he’ll have a reputation of someone who is trying to get girls in the bedroom.
This case is interesting because I feel so close to the action and drama going on. I heard he is writing a book now about his experience.
And I have 3 Chinese friends – 2 from Shanghai and 1 from Bejing that partied with me this weekend (and they are fresh from China) and they knew 2 basketball stars – Yao Ming and Kobe Bryant. There are dancers here in L.A. who don’t even know we have a basketball team; they just don’t like sports. I find that strange since dancing is a very athletic activity.
First and foremost, Alex DaSilva is a very handsome, well sought after man. Woman chase HIM…. Men are jealous of him because he can have any woman he wants…. He is a miticulous dresser, a gentleman and very sweet and kind. He’s not at all what would would imagine. AND these dance classes are held in nightclubs, in the evening, where they sell cocktails… So it’s NOT your typical teacher/instructor relationship… It’s a freaken nightclub and the women want to get there hands on the most eligible, successful bachelor in the room. I’ve personally known Alex for more than 10 years and have always known him to be quiet, sweet, respectful and a gentleman.