Two French international rugby players were formally charged on Friday, July 12, with the aggravated rape of an Argentinian woman after a night out following a match, according to a prosecution statement.
The accused, Hugo Auradou, 20, and Oscar Jegou, 21, chose “not to testify” at a hearing in the city of Mendoza, where the rape is alleged to have occurred after a game between France and Argentina on Saturday.
The prosecutor’s office “proceeded to formally charge the two French citizens… for the crime of sexual assault with penetration, aggravated by the participation of two people,” said the statement. Initially prosecuted for “sexual assault,” they have now been charged with “aggravated rape,” the most serious offense for which they could be liable. Under Argentine law, acts of sexual violence can range from sexual assault to aggravated rape. These offenses are punishable by up to 20 years of imprisonment.
The two men were arrested Monday in Buenos Aires after a 39-year-old woman accused them of raping her multiple times and beating her in a Mendoza hotel room after the match, part of a tour of South America by the French national squad. The men deny the accusation, saying they had consensual sexual relations with the woman.
Up to 20 years in prison
The players were transferred Thursday by car from Interpol’s Buenos Aires headquarters to Mendoza, some 1,000 kilometers to the west. The pair will remain in custody as further investigations are carried out. A request by the defense for them to be placed under house arrest “will be resolved in due course,” the statement said. If found guilty, the players face between eight and 20 years in prison.
Meanwhile, the 39-year-old woman’s lawyer, Natacha Romano, said her client was hospitalized Thursday after feeling ill emotionally and physically “because of everything that happened.” Psychologist Nicolas Yungman, who was not treating the woman, told local media that her symptoms, as described, could be indicative of post-traumatic stress disorder. The woman will receive treatment at a health facility for 24 to 48 hours, Romano said.
The attack allegedly took place on Saturday night at the Diplomatic Hotel in Mendoza, where France’s players and staff were staying after beating Argentina. She allegedly tried to escape several times.
Lawyer Rafael Cuneo Libarona, who represents the players, arrived in Mendoza on Wednesday and said “sexual relations” had been “consensual.” “There are cameras that saw her leave. Apparently no injuries are seen in the footage,” Libarona – who is the brother of Justice Minister Mariano Cuneo Libarona – told journalists.