A French appeals court confirmed Friday that and Morocco star player Achraf Hakimi will stand trial in a rape case, lawyers told The Associated Press.
The defender, who is currently playing with Morocco at the after , had appealed a February decision by an investigative judge. That ruling followed recommendations from public prosecutors that Hakimi should face trial.
The Versailles appeals court鈥檚 decision was released just hours before Morocco takes on Scotland in their Group C match. in its opening game.
Hakimi, one of the best right backs in the world, denies any wrongdoing. He faced preliminary charges of rape in March 2023 after a 24-year-old woman said she was raped by Hakimi at his home in a Paris suburb.
Rachel-Flore Pardo, the lawyer representing the plaintiff, said that after more than three years of legal proceedings, 鈥渁nd after being defamed and dragged through the mud by Achraf Hakimi鈥檚 defense,鈥� the court’s decision 鈥渂rings my client a sense of relief and hope.”
鈥淩elief that she has been heard by the justice system and will have her case heard at trial,鈥� Pardo said in a statement to the AP. “Hope that this trial will help other women and further weaken the fortress of denial and impunity surrounding sexual violence, including within the world of men鈥檚 football.鈥�
Hakimi claimed in a message posted on X on Friday that his case would have been dismissed if he had not been famous, and that he sometimes feels he has become 鈥渁n easy target.鈥�
鈥淛ustice looked me in the eye and told me: 鈥業f you were not famous, there would never have been a case,鈥�” Hakimi wrote. 鈥淚 chose to remain silent for years. I believed that staying dignified, being patient, and trusting the justice system would allow the right decisions to be made.鈥�
He added that the case has been detrimental not only to him, but also to his family, 鈥渁nd above all, to the truth.鈥�
鈥淚 have been waiting for this trial since the first day. And I am now waiting for it impatiently,鈥� he added. 鈥淔inally, I will be able to speak.鈥�
A date for the trial has yet to be announced.
鈥淭he multitude of exculpatory elements uncovered during the investigation and judicial inquiry would, in any other case, have led to the dismissal of the proceedings,” Hakimi鈥檚 lawyer, Fanny Colin, told the AP.
鈥淎chraf Hakimi鈥檚 defense regrets that no consequences were drawn from the contradictions and false statements made by the complainant, her concealment of information from the judicial authorities, her obstruction of the search for the truth, and the psychological assessments noting both her ambivalence and her lack of clarity regarding the events she reported.鈥�
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