The two French rugby players Hugo Auradou and Oscar Jégou, charged with rape in Argentina, will arrive this Wednesday afternoon at Paris-Charles-de-Gaulle airport.
The two French rugby players charged with rape in Argentina were leaving for France on Tuesday evening, after being authorized by the courts to leave the South American country, where according to their lawyer, they lived for two months. “horror movie”. At around 11:50 p.m. on Tuesday (4:50 a.m. in France), the French internationals were leaving for Paris-Charles-de-Gaulle airport.
Hugo Auradou and Oscar Jegou, after checking in at Buenos Aires’ Ezeiza airport, headed to the immigration area without making a declaration, AFP found. According to their Argentinian lawyer Rafael Cuneo Libarona, who was present, they were due to board a flight to Paris shortly before midnight, expected in France on Wednesday at 5:45 p.m. local time (3:45 p.m. GMT).
During the day, the two players were given the green light to leave Argentina during a hearing – in their absence – at the Mendoza court (west). The justice followed the recommendations of the prosecution according to which the accusation has “lost its initial strength”. At the hearing, the prosecution “did not object”the Mendoza court said in a statement.
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“This is a horror film that should never have existed. This should never have happened, no complaints should have been filed.”said Me Cuneo Libarona on Tuesday evening at the airport. Auradou and Jegou, two 21-year-old internationals, have been charged for nearly two months with aggravated rape because it was committed in a group. The alleged events allegedly occurred on the night of July 6 to 7 in a hotel room in Mendoza, where the French XV had just won a test match against Argentina, the first selection for the two players.
The accusation has “lost its force”
The players claim that the sexual relations with the plaintiff, a 39-year-old Argentinian woman they met in a nightclub, were consensual. And they deny any violence, while the plaintiff’s lawyer has raised the issue “terrible violence”who saw his client “savagely beaten”.
Initially detained for just over a week, Auradou and Jegou were placed under house arrest in mid-July in Mendoza, under electronic surveillance, then released on August 12, with a ban on leaving Argentina. In its argument recommending their free departure, the Mendoza prosecutor’s office had estimated on Monday that“it is clear from the abundance of evidence that the initial charge has lost its force, which must (…) have an impact on the assessment of the concrete risk of flight”.
The green light given for a return to France is accompanied by “rules” : present themselves if summoned to the Argentine consulate in France, be heard virtually “as often as required”or even return “to report to Mendoza (1,000 km from Buenos Aires) if requested”A request for dismissal, filed by the players’ lawyers last week, must now be examined by the courts. “I have no doubt that we will get it in about 10 working days, but today these boys had to go back to their country”said Mr. Cuneo Libarona.
