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BREAKING: French prosecutors formally charge PSG star Achraf Hakimi with rape after a 24-year-old woman accused the Moroccan international of assaulting her in Paris last month
- The Moroccan international was accused of raping a woman in his home last month
- The French prosecutor’s office now accuses the Paris Saint-Germain player of rape
- Achraf Hakimi’s lawyer said earlier this week that the accusation was false.
Paris Saint-Germain and Morocco defender Achraf Hakimi has been formally charged with rape by French prosecutors.
Hakimi, 24, is accused of raping a woman at his home in the suburbs of Paris last month.
A 24-year-old woman went to a police station on Sunday last week to report an incident, but did not press charges.
An investigation into the case was opened earlier this week, and it was confirmed on Friday morning that he has been charged on the allegations that were questioned by investigators on Thursday.
Hakimi’s lawyer said earlier in the week that the allegations are “false.”
French prosecutors have reportedly charged Achraf Hakimi with rape after an investigation.
The defender is reportedly accused of raping a woman at his Paris home last month.
The accusations are false. He is calm and is making himself available to the authorities,” said Hakimi’s lawyer, Fanny Colin.
“The club supports the player, who has firmly denied the accusations and trusts in justice,” PSG said in a statement earlier this week. “Paris St-Germain is an institution that promotes respect on and off the pitch.”
The prosecutor’s office handling the case declined to comment when contacted earlier this week, but said the information that had been released in the media “undermined the investigations necessary to uncover the truth.”
The report detailing the charges, published in Le Parisien, claims that Hakimi was only told about the opening of the investigation 90 minutes before the Best FIFA Football Awards ceremony in Paris on Monday night.
The 24-year-old was part of the Morocco squad that reached the quarterfinals of the World Cup.
His performances saw him honored at the ceremony, where he was named in the FIFPro Men’s World Team of the Year.
Hakimi took the stage to collect the award along with other winners, including his PSG teammates Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi.
Hakimi was also part of the Morocco team that finished fourth at the World Cup in Qatar.
Born in Madrid, his penalty kick secured a 3-0 shootout victory against Spain to take Morocco into uncharted territory. The North African team became the first from the Arab world to reach the quarterfinals at a World Cup.