Published on September 27, 2024 at 3:30 p.m.
French rugby players Oscar Jegou, right, and Hugo Auradou, alongside their lawyer Rafael Cuneo Libarona at the airport in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Tuesday, September 3, 2024. – ©Gustavo Garello/AP/SIPA
The Jegou-Auradou affair, which is shaking the world of French rugby, is taking a new turn. A recent psychological report validates the version of the complainant, who accuses rugby players Hugo Auradou and Oscar Jegou of aggravated rape in Argentina.
Contrary to the initial conclusions, this document considers his story “credible” and highlights the excesses of the investigation. This report, commissioned by the plaintiff’s defense, contradicts the first expert opinions which had deemed the victim’s testimonies “implausible”. The expert affirms that the inconsistencies noted in the three statements are due to the trauma, and not to attempts at concealment. According to her, the psychological portrait of the complainant corresponds to that of a victim of sexual violence, making her stories more coherent than we thought.
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A criticized investigation
The report not only validates the complainant’s version, it also criticizes the methods of the investigators. The expert deplores an “inquisitive” tone and a lack of “gender perspective” in the approach. Questions deemed inappropriate and an aggressive attitude during interrogations would have contributed to distorting the first analyses.
Despite this damning report for the methods of the investigation, the rugby players’ lawyer, German Hnatow, remains categorical: these new conclusions have “little weight” in the face of the official evaluation, and he continues to qualify the testimony of the complainant of “not credible”. The two accused, still indicted for aggravated gang rape, firmly deny the facts.
An issue that goes beyond sport
This matter goes far beyond the framework of rugby. It raises crucial questions about the way in which sexual violence is treated, in particular the management of women’s testimonies in the face of judicial systems which, sometimes, lack sensitivity. The Jegou-Auradou affair highlights the difficulty for victims in obtaining true recognition of their words.
The Mendoza Public Prosecutor’s Office must now decide on the request for dismissal from the rugby players’ lawyers. This new report could well influence the outcome of the affair.
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