French investigators are looking into fresh claims that former International Monetary Fund (IMF) chief Dominique Strauss-Khan and three of his associates gang-raped a Belgian sex-worker in a Washington hotel two years ago, media reports citing officials said Friday.
The Belgian prostitute involved is said to have testified earlier that she was forced to participate in sexual acts by Strauss-Kahn and three of his friends during a party held in a Washington hotel suite in December 2010.
A second Belgian prostitute present at the party has reportedly partially confirmed her statement. Although the two women have not sought to press charges in connection with the incident in France, the country's laws allow an investigation even without a formal complaint.
French prosecutors have already placed Strauss-Kahn under investigation in connection with an ongoing probe into a prostitution ring in the French city of Lille. He is suspected of active and continued involvement in the ring, which authorities believe procured prostitutes for high-profile clients including politicians, businessmen as well as senor police officials.
Strauss-Kahn faces up to 20 years' jail if convicted of the charges. Although prostitution is legal is France, but profiting from the prostitution of another person is illegal. Prosecutors are reportedly considering whether to expand the ongoing Lille investigation to include the Washington case as well.
Apart from Strauss-Kahn, businessmen Fabrice Paszkowski and David Roquet as well as policeman Jean-Christophe Lagarde have also been named in the Lille investigation. Incidentally, the alleged Washington incident also concerns the same four.
The development comes just days after a judge in New York ruled Tuesday that a sexual assault civil lawsuit filed by a city hotel maid against Strauss-Kahn can proceed to trial, rejecting an appeal by the ex-IMF chief to have the case dismissed on grounds of diplomatic immunity.
In the civil lawsuit, the 32-year-old maid, Nafissatou Diallo, accuses Strauss-Kahn of sexually assaulting her and forcing her to perform oral sex. Strauss-Kahn has denied her accusations, insisting that the sexual encounter was consensual.
Earlier, the criminal case against Strauss-Kahn, initiated by the maid's complaint, was dropped in August due to doubts about the credibility of Nafissatou, prompting her to launch a civil case against the former IMF chief.
After his return to Paris following the dismissal of the New York criminal case, Strauss-Kahn was accused by French journalist and writer Tristane Banon of attempting to assault her like a "rutted chimpanzee" as she tried to interview him in a Paris apartment in 2003. But that case was also dropped due to the statute of limitations.
Strauss-Kahn had resigned the IMF executive post on May 16, 2010, just days after being arrested in New York over the hotel maid's claims. The organization has since chosen French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde as his replacement.
Ahead of his arrest in New York, Strauss-Kahn, who had gained international acclaim for his response to the 2007-09 global financial meltdown and Europe's debt crisis, was seen as a potential candidate for the French presidency. Experts now believe that the sex scams involving Banon and Nafissatou have damaged Strauss-Kahn's political ambitions beyond repair.
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Market Analysis
December 19, 2025 15:10 ET U.S. inflation data and interest rate decisions by major central banks were the highlights of this busy week for economics news flow. Employment data and survey results on the housing markets also gained attention in the U.S. In Europe, the European Central Bank and Bank of England announced their policy decisions and macroeconomic projections.