Rio Police Charge Lochte With False Report of Robbery: AP

Lochte initially claimed he and three other teammates were held up by armed robbers

Brazilian police charged American swimmer Ryan Lochte on Thursday with filing a false robbery report over an incident during the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, The Associated Press reports.

A police statement said Lochte would be informed in the United States so he could decide whether to introduce a defense in Brazil. The indictment will also be sent to the International Olympic Committee's ethics commission, the statement said.

Earlier Thursday, NBC News reported that Lochte will be summoned to testify at a hearing in front of the Brazilian justice in the wake of the altercation in Rio. 

The swimmer's spokeswoman, Melissa Nathan, said Lochte had no comment.

Lochte initially claimed he and three other teammates were held up by armed robbers early Aug. 14 at a gas station following a night of drinking and clubbing.

Police were closing their investigation into the criminal case this week and will hand it over to Rio's public prosecutor, Detective Clemente Braune told NBC News. A formal document was expected to be sent to a U.S. court asking for cooperation in summoning the swimmer to Brazil.

Lochte left Rio for the United States as the scandal unfolded and Brazilian authorities say he fabricated the events of what happened.

If he doesn't show up to the hearing, the process will continue without him, officials said.

The swimmer's publicists and his lawyer, Jeff Ostrow, did not immediately respond to calls and emails from The Associated Press seeking comment. An attorney for Lochte did not earlier respond to a request for comment from NBC News about the summons to testify.

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