A French senator has been preliminarily accused of slipping ecstasy to a fellow lawmaker with the intention of sexually assaulting her, according to prosecutors.
Joel Guerriau, who represents the Loire-Atlantique region in western France, was arrested Thursday at his Paris home after being accused of spiking the drink of Sandrine Josso, 48, who represents the same area. in the National Assembly, the lower house of the French Parliament. , reported the AFP.
Paris prosecutors said Friday that Guerriau, 66, was under investigation for use and possession of illicit drugs and for giving someone mind-altering drugs without their consent to “commit rape or sexual assault,” which entails a maximum sentence of five years in prison. and a fine of approximately $82,000.
Under French law, preliminary charges mean investigating magistrates have strong reasons to suspect wrongdoing but need more time before deciding whether to send a case to trial.
Josso, 48, filed a criminal complaint after he allegedly became ill from drinking from a glass at Guerriau’s home Tuesday night and learned through a medical examination that ecstasy was present in his system, according to investigators. .
The lawmakers, although longtime friends, were not in a relationship, according to prosecutors.
French senator Joel Guerriau has been preliminarily accused of drugging a fellow lawmaker in an attempt to sexually assault her.AP
Julia Minkowski, Josso’s lawyer, told AFP on Friday that her client was “still in shock.”
He said Josso had felt unwell after drinking a glass of champagne at Guerriau’s home and saw his host “clutching a small plastic bag containing something white, in a drawer in his kitchen.”
“He had to deploy monumental physical and intellectual forces to overcome his terror and free himself at the last minute from this ambush,” Minkowski said.
Guerriau could face up to five years in prison on the charges and a fine of approximately $82,000. French Senate Press Service/AFP via Getty Images
“Added to this is a feeling of betrayal and total incomprehension: Joël Guerriau was a friend for about ten years in whom I had complete confidence.”
Guerriau, who is a banker and was first elected senator in 2011, has been placed under judicial supervision and is prohibited from visiting Josso’s home or contacting her or any witnesses, according to prosecutors and his lawyer, Remi-Pierre Drai.
Drai told the outlet that Guerriau denied having any intention to attack his colleague.
Sandrine Josso filed a criminal complaint after feeling unwell from drinking at Guerriau’s home and testing positive for ecstasy. AFP via Getty Images
“Joel Guerriau is not a predator,” Drai said.
“He is an honest, respected and respectable man who will restore his honor and that of his family.”
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Source: vtt.edu.vn