Two French rugby players accused of rape allowed to leave Argentina

The decision was made on Tuesday, the day after the recommendation of the Mendoza prosecutor’s office. Hugo Auradou and Oscar Jegou, the two rugby players from the French XV accused of rape in Argentina, where they have been for almost two months, are authorized to leave Argentine territory. “from now on”after the decision of a judge of detentions and liberties, rendered during a hearing on Tuesday, September 3, announced the provincial justice of Mendoza (west). They remain pursued by the Argentine justice in this case.

The prosecution did not object to the recommendation issued Monday by the Mendoza prosecutor’s office, the court said in a statement. The prosecutor’s office had ruled in favor of allowing the two players to leave the country. “so that they can travel to France.”

The agreement in principle given by the prosecution is “with rules”said Martin Ahumada, spokesperson for the provincial justice system, on Monday: “ For example, they must present themselves if summoned to the Argentine consulate in France, must establish a real and virtual address, and must present themselves in Mendoza [ville située à 1 000 kilomètres de Buenos Aires] if asked.”

Released three weeks ago

Oscar Jegou and Hugo Auradou, both 21, are charged with aggravated gang rape on the night of 6 to 7 July against a 39-year-old Argentinian woman in a hotel room in Mendoza – 1,000 kilometres from the capital, Buenos Aires – where the French XV had just played a test match against Argentina.

The alleged victim, who had met the players at a nightclub and followed one of them to the hotel, says she was raped and assaulted in their room. The defendants acknowledge a sexual relationship, but claim it was consensual and deny any violence. The two French XV players were imprisoned after their arrest on July 8, 2024, then placed under house arrest on August 17 in Mendoza.

Considering that the “sufficient evidence has not been gathered” To justify the continued house arrest of the French rugby players, the Mendoza provincial prosecutor’s office decided to release them on Monday, August 12, while placing them under judicial supervision, requiring them to remain in Argentina while the investigation continues. The two players recovered their passports and left Mendoza for Buenos Aires. On Friday, their lawyers had asked the courts to lift the ban on them leaving the country.

Prosecutors’ request to be disqualified rejected

In a potential turning point in the case, the plaintiff’s lawyers filed a request on Monday to disqualify the prosecutors in charge of the investigation, according to them, “mental violence and lack of objectivity”Listing a series of grievances and failings in the investigation, they accused the magistrates of having “judged instead of investigated”.

After an ad hoc hearing on Monday, the Mendoza public prosecutor’s office rejected the request for recusal, arguing in a statement that “the alleged hypothesis, that is to say the loss of objectivity of the magistrates involved, has not been proven” by the applicants.

The players’ French lawyer, Antoine Vey, had denounced in the request for recusal “yet another delaying tactic, [qui] does not change the phase of the file in any way”is “the background elements”No date has yet been set for a review of the request for dismissal, but this could take place within a few days.