Dominique Strauss-Khan is the gift that keeps on giving, and this time he’s giving bail,
France Probes Ex-IMF Chief for Sex-Ring Link
French magistrates placed former International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn under preliminary investigation for his alleged involvement in a French prostitution ring, prosecutors said, putting the onetime presidential hopeful back into a harsh spotlight.
The magistrates on Monday ordered Mr. Strauss-Kahn to refrain from communicating with plaintiffs as well as with anyone else being prosecuted in the investigation, prosecutors from the northern French city of Lille said in a statement. Mr. Strauss-Kahn, who wasn’t detained or arrested, was also ordered to pay a €100,000 bail ($133,500).
A lawyer for Mr. Strauss-Kahn said that his client “strongly and firmly” rejected the preliminary charges of “aggravated pimping.”
Prostitution is legal in France, but pimping isn’t. To indict him, prosecutors would have to prove that he played an organizational role in the alleged prostitution ring.
…
Investigators had considered investigating Mr. Strauss-Kahn for allegedly illegally benefiting from prostitutes paid through corporate accounts. At least one company has filed a complaint to prosecutors that corporate funds had been diverted for that purpose by the alleged prostitution ring, the people familiar with the matter said.But on Monday, the Lille magistrates opted not to probe that allegation, the people familiar with the probe said.
Through lawyers, Mr. Strauss-Kahn has said that he had no knowledge that company funds may have been misappropriated by the alleged ring.
I wouldn’t know if he did, but you can bet he’s p****d off someone who wants him out of the French political scene.
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