The Paris prosecutor's office has requested a new trial for actor Gérard Depardieu for the rape and sexual assault of actress Charlotte Arnould. The 75-year-old giant of French cinema was indicted on December 16, 2020, following a complaint from the 28-year-old accusing him of two rapes committed on August 7 and 13, 2018, at the actor's home in the 6th arrondissement of Paris.
It is now up to the investigating judge in charge of the case to order a trial or not. These summonses "are the result of a long investigation that has allowed us to gather the elements that confirm my client's word," Charlotte Arnould's lawyer, Carine Durrieu-Diebolt, told AFP. "For her, this is a huge step forward, full of hope, while we await the order of the investigating judge who will close the investigation," she added.
Deparieu, who has also been accused by other women of sexual violence, has always denied it. At the end of the investigation in June 2019 conducted by the 3rd district of the judicial police, the proceedings were closed because the facts did not appear to be sufficiently founded. Charlotte Arnould then filed a civil complaint on March 10, 2020 in Paris with the dean of the investigating judges. The trial will take place in October, before the Criminal Court of Paris for sexual violence against two women during the filming of the film "Les volets verts" by Jean Becker in 2021.
(Online Union)
