French actor Gérard Depardieu has been taken into police custody for questioning regarding sexual assault allegations made by two women. According to reports from French media outlets BFMTV and Le Parisien, the 75-year-old Depardieu was summoned to a police station in Paris on Monday morning.
The Paris prosecutor’s office has declined to comment on the situation, saying they will need to assess any potential charges before commenting further. One of Depardieu’s lawyers, Christian Saint-Palais, was seen entering the police station but did not make any statement to reporters, stating that as a lawyer he cannot comment at this stage of the legal process.
The allegations against Depardieu reportedly involve two separate incidents of sexual assault on movie sets – one alleged incident from 2014 and another from 2021. The 2014 allegation was officially filed with police in January of this year. The second incident allegedly involved a 53-year-old movie decorator who claims Depardieu groped her waist, stomach and breasts during filming of the movie “Les Volets verts” in 2021.
Depardieu has denied any wrongdoing, releasing an open letter last year stating “I have never, ever abused a woman.” He is already facing preliminary rape and sexual assault charges filed in 2020 relating to accusations from actress Charlotte Arnould. Depardieu is a renowned French actor who has achieved international fame through roles in Hollywood films.
Source: APNEWS
