Former IMF boss Dominique Strauss-Kahn has filed a lawsuit for defamation against a young French writer who accuses him of trying to rape her in 2003, his lawyer said Monday. "It was filed, as we had announced, as soon as we learned of the launch of the preliminary inquiry" by French police into the attempted rape allegations, lawyer Henri Leclerc said, adding that the suit was filed late last week.
The announcement came after French police on Monday interviewed Tristane Banon, 32, over her claim that the Socialist politician tried to rape her in 2003 when she interviewed him for a book project. Paris police have been asked by investigating magistrates to look into her formal complaint lodged last week against Strauss-Kahn, who is also accused of sex crimes in New York.
Prosecutors will then decide whether or not to charge the 62-year-old, who was formerly the French opposition Socialists best hope to beat Nicolas Sarkozy in next year's presidential election. Strauss-Kahn has dismissed as "imaginary" Banon's allegations, which threaten to overwhelm resurgent hopes that he could bounce back politically after being arrested in New York, where the case of his alleged attempted rape of a hotel maid is collapsing after prosecutors raised doubts about his accuser's credibility.
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