Paris Saint-Germain defender Achraf Hakimi used to be given initial fees of rape, French prosecutors stated Friday.
The prosecutors’ place of job within the Paris suburb of Nanterre stated Hakimi used to be wondered on Thursday by way of investigators probing rape allegations. An investigating pass judgement on positioned the football participant below judicial supervision.
In the French prison gadget, initial fees imply judges have sturdy reason why to suspect a criminal offense used to be dedicated however are permitting time for additional investigation earlier than deciding whether or not to ship a case to trial.
Hakimi’s attorney, Fanny Colin, stated the participant “strongly denied accusations made against him,” in a written message to The Associated Press.
Colin stated her consumer being indicted is an “obligatory step for any person being accused of rape” and can permit Hakimi to shield himself by way of giving him get entry to to the case. Colin additionally stated that some components accrued by way of the judicial police display, in step with her, that Hakimi “in this case has been subjected to a racketeering attempt.”
The Morocco nationwide group participant has been prohibited from contacting the alleged sufferer, a 24-year-old girl who says she used to be raped by way of Hakimi on Saturday at his house in a Paris suburb. Hakimi is authorized to depart French territory, prosecutors stated.
According to Le Parisien newspaper, which published the allegations previous this week, the girl went to the police station on Sunday, the place she accused him of rape.
The girl’s attorney, Rachel-Flore Pardo, stated in a commentary that initial fees display “there is reliable and consistent evidence.”
“My client made the choice to trust in justice, and only in justice, and will speak only to justice,” she stated in a commentary to the AP. “We won’t tolerate any smear or destabilization campaign (against her).”
The Spanish-born Hakimi is a defender who helped Morocco make World Cup historical past final yr by way of changing into the primary African group to achieve the event’s semifinals. He used to be observed coaching with PSG on Friday.
Prosecutors opened their initial investigation on Monday.
Hakimi returned to coaching with PSG on Friday after a minor hamstring factor, and he might be within the group’s squad to play Bayern Munich on Wednesday within the Champions League.
PSG is scheduled to play Nantes at house on Saturday within the French league.
At a information convention on Friday, PSG trainer Christophe Galtier stated he would “answer no questions of a non-sporting nature (relating to) Achraf Hakimi.”
Galtier stated he was hoping Hakimi may teach with the remainder of the group “to be available” to play in opposition to Bayern Munich on Wednesday in the second one leg of the spherical of 16.
“The players were hard-working and serious,” Galtier stated when requested what the temper used to be like at coaching given the case.
Hakimi gave the impression on level on the FIFA Awards in Paris on Monday. He used to be commemorated as a part of the player-voted males’s all-star group and used to be greeted by way of transient, loud applause when offered.