LILLE, FRANCE // A French prosecutor yesterday called for Dominique Strauss-Kahn to be acquitted of pimping charges in a trial which has seen lurid details of the former IMF chief’s sex life exposed in court.
“Neither the judicial enquiry nor the hearing have established that Mr Strauss-Kahn is guilty” of procuring prostitutes for sex parties he attended in Paris, Brussels and Washington, said prosecutor Frederic Fevre.
The 65-year-old, once tipped for the French presidency, has denied knowing the women at the orgies were prostitutes, or that he organised for them to be there. If convicted of pimping, he could have landed in jail for up to 10 years.
Even before the trial, Mr Fevre said he was not convinced there was a strong case against Mr Strauss-Kahn and asked for the charges to be dropped. However he was overruled by investigative judges who sent the case to trial.
The prosecutor said that the economist’s notoriety “should not be a presumption of guilt”.
“Our legal system must take pride in never convicting someone if there is any doubt. I therefore request his acquittal, pure and simple,” said Mr Fevre.
In another boost for Mr Strauss-Kahn, two ex-prostitutes who attended the orgies dropped a civil lawsuit against him, citing lack of proof.
* Agence France-Presse
