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Gerard Depardieu Faces Probe Over Alleged Rapes, Sex Assaults

  French star Gerard Depardieu “absolutely denies any attack, any rape”, his lawyer Herve Termime said on Thursday after a judicial source told AFP he … Continue reading Gerard Depardieu Faces Probe Over Alleged Rapes, Sex Assaults


In this file photo taken on June 25, 2018, French actor Gerard Depardieu waves as he arrives at the Town Hall in Brussels for a ceremony as part of the ‘Brussels International Film Festival’ (Briff). According to judicial source on August 30, 2018, French actor Gerard Depardieu faces probe over alleged rape and sex assaults. THIERRY ROGE / BELGA / AFP
French actor Gerard Depardieu.                                                       Photo: THIERRY ROGE / BELGA / AFP

 

French star Gerard Depardieu “absolutely denies any attack, any rape”, his lawyer Herve Termime said on Thursday after a judicial source told AFP he was facing a probe over alleged “rapes and sexual assaults”.

The source said the Paris public prosecutor’s office had opened a preliminary inquiry into allegations against Depardieu following a complaint lodged on Monday in southern Aix-en-Provence.

“I regret the public nature of this process which poses a major prejudice to Gerard Depardieu, whose innocence I am convinced will be recognised,” his lawyer Herve Termime added, calling for restraint on all sides.

Depardieu, 69, is France’s biggest international star and has made more than 180 films.

A controversial and larger-than-life character, he became the very face of French cinema due to roles in films such as such as “Cyrano de Bergerac” for which won best actor at the Cannes film festival and was nominated for an Oscar.

He made his name in the 1974 film “Going Places” after which he enjoyed a meteoric rise, demonstrating talent and allure in wide-ranging roles in classics, dramas and comedies alike.

In 2013 Depardieu sparked a huge outcry by leaving France and taking Russian nationality in protest at a proposed tax hike on the rich in his homeland.

Russian President Vladimir Putin treated him to a dinner to present him with his new citizenship and Depardieu was subsequently full of praise in an interview to Komsomolskaya Pravda daily.

AFP