Strauss-Kahn rape case thrown out

INVESTIGATING magistrates in Lille have decided not to proceed with any rape charges against former International Monetary Fund director general Dominique Strauss-Kahn.

He had been accused of rape by a prostitute involved in private sex parties in a Washington hotel but the woman, a Belgian, did not lodge an official complaint.

She later wrote to police in Lille saying that she had been a willing participant in the events.

The complaint came to light as magistrates were investigating an alleged prostitution ring operating out of the Carlton Hotel in Lille. These investigations, in which Strauss-Kahn and eight others have been implicated, are still continuing.

The next hearing on these allegations is scheduled for November 28 in Douai, when the appeal court will hear a bid by Strauss-Kahn and a co-defendant to get the charges thrown out.
Photo:Guillaume Paumier Wikimedia Commons, CC-by-sa-3.0