French Singer Charged With Rape and Sexual Assault in Four Cases; He Denies the Allegations
The 67-year-old French singer and actor faces formal investigation over four cases involving nine alleged victims between 2000 and 2019. Complaints from 13 additional women dating to 1992 were added to the file.
France 24Patrick Bruel was charged with rape and sexual assault on Wednesday after hours of questioning by judges at a Nanterre police station. The 67-year-old singer and actor was placed under formal investigation over four cases that include alleged rape, attempted rape, sexual assault and sexual harassment.
He was designated an assisted witness in four additional cases involving alleged rape and attempted rape.
The Nanterre prosecutor’s office said the questioning concerned nine alleged victims between 2000 and 2019. Complaints from 13 other women accusing Bruel of rape, attempted rape, sexual assault and sexual harassment from 1992 to 2008 were added to the file, though the office stated those complaints appeared to be beyond the statute of limitations at this stage.
Bruel’s lawyers said he denied all charges.
Bruel was released on bail in the early hours of Thursday. More than 20 women have made allegations against him dating back to the 1990s, with the earliest complaints stretching to 1992. Bruel’s pop career took off in the 1990s with several top-selling albums.
He acted in dozens of films and was briefly a world poker champion in 1998. He continued acting on stage in Paris until recent days. The investigative website Mediapart and the magazine Elle published a series of accusations by women against Bruel in recent months.
Bruel’s lawyers told Mediapart he denied all allegations of violence, brutality or constraint. He called off a planned concert tour across France after protests by feminist campaigners and urging from the mayors of Marseille, Paris and Nancy. Daniela Elstner, the current director of Unifrance, spoke out against Bruel.
