A French senator has been initially charged with injecting a member of parliament with ecstasy with the intention of sexually assaulting him, according to prosecutors.
Joel Guerriau, who represents the Loire-Atlantique region in western France, was arrested Thursday at his home in Paris after he was accused of spraying Sandrine Josso, 48, who represents the same region in the Senate, the lower house of the French Parliament, with a drink, AFP reported.
The Paris prosecutor’s office said Friday Guerriau, 66, is being investigated for using and possessing illegal drugs and for giving someone a mind-altering drug without their consent to “commit rape or sexual assault,” which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison. and about $82,000 in fines.
Under French law, a preliminary charge means the investigating magistrate has good reason to suspect wrongdoing but needs more time before deciding whether to send the case to trial.
Josso, 48, filed the criminal complaint after he allegedly became ill after drinking a glass at Guerriau’s home Tuesday night and learned from medical tests that ecstasy was in his system, according to investigators.
The lawmaker, though a longtime friend, had no relationship, according to prosecutors.
French Senator Joel Guerriau was previously charged with assaulting a fellow member of parliament in an attempt to sexually assault him.AP
Julia Minkowski, a lawyer for Josso, told AFP on Friday that her client was “still in shock.”
He said Josso felt unwell after drinking a glass of champagne at Guerriau’s house, and saw his host “take a small plastic bag containing something white, in a drawer in his kitchen.”
“He had to use monumental physical and intellectual strength to overcome his fear and free himself at the last minute from this ambush,” Minkowski said.
Guerriau could face up to five years in prison on the charge and a fine of about $82,000. French Senate Press Service/AFP via Getty Images
“Added to this feeling of betrayal and complete incomprehension – Joël Guerriau had been a friend for about 10 years whom he trusted completely.”
Guerriau, who is a banker and was first elected to the senate in 2011, has been placed under judicial supervision and prohibited from visiting Josso’s home or contacting him or any witnesses, according to the prosecutor and his lawyer, Remi-Pierre Drai.
Drai told the outlet Guerriau denied he had any intention of attacking his colleague.
Sandrine Josso filed a criminal complaint after feeling unwell after 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, respectable and respected man who will restore his honor and that of his family.”
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
