72-year-old French actor Gerard Depardieu charged with rape and sexual assault

72-year-old French actor Gerard Depardieu charged with rape and sexual assault
Actor Gerard Depardieu.
PHOTO: Reuters

The 72-year-old French actor has been accused of attacking the young actress in August 2018 on a number of occasions.

A judicial source has confirmed to Agence France-Presse that Depardieu had criminal charges filed against him in December, after the initial accusations were dropped due to lack of evidence.

It has been claimed that the two rapes took place in Depardieu's home in 2018 as well as a number of sexual assaults around a similar time. It is believed the rapes took place on Aug 7 and Aug 13.

Whilst the young woman is thought to be an actress, it is believed she attended the property as a family friend of the 'Green Card' actor. However, Depardieu claimed it was a "consensual relationship" and he had been offering her career advice as a good friend of her father's.

Her lawyer Elodie Tuaillon-Hibon insisted that the woman's "private sphere will be respected" throughout the case and has "requested privacy" for the actress.

Herve Temime, Depardieu's lawyer, said he was "sorry that this information has been made public" and confirmed the actor was currently on bail.

The woman made a complaint initially in Aix-en-Provence, south of France but after nine months of investigation, the case was closed "with no evidence of a crime". As part of this, Depardieu met with the victim, in a meeting set up by police, before the case was dismissed on June 4, 2019.

Depardieu - who was married to Élisabeth Dépardieu  until 1996 - has starred in a number of films over the year including Cyrano de Bergerac, The Man in the Iron Mask as well as 2002's Life of Pi.

ALSO READ: French actor Depardieu placed under sexual violence investigation: Judicial source

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