Matt Hazlett/Getty Images(RIO DE JANEIRO) — A Brazilian judge has ordered the seizure of U.S. swimming star Ryan Lochte’s passport after claims about being robbed at gunpoint while in Rio have produced little evidence.
Lochte has already left the country, and arrived on U.S. soil, according to U.S. officials.
The passport of James Feigen, another U.S. swimmer, has also been requested.
Lochte, a former gold medalist and reality TV show star, claimed on Sunday that he and three other swimmers had been robbed at about 4 a.m. in a taxi cab headed for the Olympic Village in Rio.
The threat of violent crime in Rio had been widely reported prior to the start of the games.
ABC News has learned that Rio police have searched the rooms of the four swimmers in the Olympic Village. Feigen and the other two swimmers involved in the alleged robbery are still in Brazil.
A statement from the U.S. Swimming team acknowledged the request, and said that they were cooperating with authorities.
“Local police arrived at the Olympic Village this a.m. and asked to meet with Ryan Lochte and James Feigen and collect their passports in order to secure further testimony from the athletes. The swim team moved out of the village after their competition ended, so we were not able to make the athletes available,” the statement said.
The team added that they could not confirm the locations of Lochte or Feigen.
“Additionally, as part of our standard security protocol, we do not make athlete travel plans public and therefore cannot confirm the athletes’ current location,” U.S. Swimming said.
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