French actor Gérard Depardieu, 75, placed ‘in custody over sexual assault claims’
29 April 2024, 10:57
French actor Gérard Depardieu has been placed in custody in Paris after being accused of sexual assault, according to reports.
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Depardieu, 75, was reportedly placed in custody at a Paris police station following allegations he had molested two members of production staff on different film sets.
The actor, known for his roles in hit films Green Card and The Last Metro, has vehemently denied all allegations against him.
An investigation source told the MailOnline: “Mr Depardieu was summoned to appear at a Paris police station today, and is currently in custody.
“He is being questioned about two alleged sexual assaults that took place in 2014 and 2021”.
The first complainant said the incident occurred in September 2021 when Depardieu touched her intimately, wrapped his legs around her and used crude language against her.
She described it as a “wolf trap” set with “phenomenal force” before a witness allegedly pulled him away from the woman.
Depardieu later said “I apologise because it is necessary to apologise” before calling the woman a “slut”, according to a source at the BFM news outlet.
The second complainant says she was attacked in March 2024.
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She said she was molested by the actor at his Paris home and that he made obscene comments.
The actor has faced several allegations in recent years.
In 2018, actor Charlotte Arnould accused Depardieu of sexual assault and rape.
Lawyer Carine Durrieu-Diebolt, who is representing Ms Arnould, claims her client was raped and sexually assaulted by the actor.
CCTV footage shows Depardieu performing a sex act on Ms Arnould at his Paris mansion in August 2018, which he has insisted was consensual.
Ms Arnould waived her right to anonymity at the end of 2021 after Depardieu was charged with rape and sexual assault.
In October, he spoke out against the claims against him, as he said: “I am neither a rapist nor a predator”.
It comes after a criminal inquiry was opened into the suspected suicide of French actress Emmanuelle Debever, who was among the first to accuse Depardieu of sexual assault.
She died on December 7, the same day a new documentary aired, titled Gérard Depardieu: The Fall of the Ogre was broadcast across France.
The documentary included details of an alleged attack by Depardieu on Ms Debever when she was a teenager.
The same month, another French actress filed a formal sex attack complaint against Depardieu, alleging he treated her like a “piece of meat”.
Actress Hélène Darras, 43, reported him in September. They appeared together in the 2007 film Disco.
After waiving her right to anonymity, she told the same Further Investigation (Complément d’enquete) documentary series: “He [Depardieu] is unmanageable.
“He looks at me as if I were a piece of meat. I have an ultra-tight dress, he pulls me closer to him by the waist, then he runs his hand over my hips, over my bum”.
And also in the same month, Spanish journalist and writer Ruth Baza also filed a complaint in Spain against Depardieu for rape, relating to acts dating back to 1995 in Paris.
