The star of the French film Gérard Depardieu will be tried for having allegedly raped the 22 -year -old actress, Charlotte Arnould, twice at his home. It is the allegation of the most recent sexual assault of the actor, following his conviction in the spring and his 18 -month sentence which he has since appealed.
Arnould first accused Depardieu of rape in 2018, saying that the assaults occurred in his house in Paris twice when it was at the beginning of the twenty. Depardieu denied any reprehensible act in the case.
In a statement published on her Instagram page, the French actress said after “seven years of horror and hell”, the case will finally be tried (translated by French).
“With a defense which, in recent months, has been excessive and absolutely useless for the discovery of the truth, the order restored a form of judicial truth,” she added. “I think I have trouble achieving how enormous it is. I am relieved. “
When Arnould pointed out the allegations for the first time, the police said that there was not enough evidence to charge Depardieu of Rape. Arnould then brought a civil action against Depardieu in 2020, and the prosecutors reopened the investigation and asked for a trial for the actor in 2022.
Depardieu has long denied any allegation made by Arnould and said that her relationship with the actress was consensual. The new trial comes only a few months after the actor was found guilty of having sexually assaulted two women on the set of his film in 2021, “the green valets”.
A judge of the Court of Paris granted him a suspended prison sentence in May, which he had since appealed, after being found guilty of having sexually assaulted a defined decorator and an assistant director. In addition, his name will be added to the register of sex offenders in France and he must pay a fine of about $ 32,350, including the medical costs of a victim.
The actress and former Ballet dancer Arnould was present in the courtroom in May when Depardieu was found guilty, and the actor’s lawyers even called him a liar in the courtroom.
Depardieu was publicly accused of sexual assault by more than 20 women and became the face of the French movement #MeToo. If it is found guilty, the rape offense carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison in France.
