Jegou-Auradou case: transfer to Mendoza, indictment, penalties incurred… what we know about the investigation

French XV rugby players Oscar Jegou and Hugo Auradou were transferred to Mendoza, in the west of Argentina, to be heard before possible indictment in a case of sexual violence. that we know.

Hugo Auradou, 20, and Oscar Jegou, 21, are accused of violently raping a 39-year-old woman in the province of Mendoza, on the border with Chile, after a match against the Argentine pumas Saturday.

The plaintiff's lawyer, Me Natacha Romano, told AFP that her client met Hugo Auradou "in a box of night of Mendoza" and "went to the’hotel"&amp ;nbsp;with him, where the player"Immediately grabs her, throws her on the bed, begins to undress her and begins to beat her savagely, she claims.

"Once she can no longer defend herself, when she no longer has any chance of escape , she is sexually assaulted by this first person", she continues. According to her, Oscar Jegou enters "an hour later" in the room where he "savagely begins to commit the same acts of sexual violence".

The lawyer for the two rugby players, Me Rafael Cuneo Libarona, denies the accusations and affirms that these sexual relations were "consensual". The plaintiff "claims she was beaten, (hotel surveillance) cameras say she wasn’was not", a-t -he also declared.

Transfer to Mendoza

Hugo Auradou and Oscar Jegou, arrested Monday and held in the premises of the Argentine federal police in Buenos Aires, were being transferred this Thursday to Mendoza. The 1,100 kilometer journey by road took more than 12 and 15 hours. They arrived there during the night.

On Friday around 9 a.m., they were taken to an "arraignment hearing" in front of deputy prosecutor Cecilia Bignert, who replaces prosecutor Dario Nora, initially in charge of the case but currently on judicial vacation.

Indictment

If they are formally charged, the two young men will be placed in detention until the referral hearing, within ten days after the indictment. & ;quot;It is possible that in the middle of these ten days, they will request parole or house arrest. We will not know until they have been charged", Martin Ahumada, spokesperson for the Mendoza public prosecutor's office, told AFP.

Pre-trial detention may be required in the event of suspicion of hindering the progress of the investigation or risk of flight. "They were traveling in Argentina, they have no roots because they don’live here and they are supposed to have the means to leave the country&quot ;, explained Mr. Ahumada.
Me Cuneo Libarona will ask for his clients"a home with a guardian so that from Friday they can be accommodated in this home" and will argue that'"there is no danger of leakage".

Penalties incurred

Penalties for sexual assault range from six to fifteen years, according to the Argentine Penal Code. However, "the aggravating circumstance that the facts took place in a meeting", could increase the sentence of eight to twenty years in prison, indicated Mr. Ahumada.

It is possible that they will be deprived of their liberty "for not having allowed the complainant to leave the room when she requested it& ;quot;, his lawyer Me Romano told AFP, who also declared that he "There’s not just one crime to investigate".

The XV of France

After a success against Uruguay (43-28), Fabien Galthié's men complete their nightmare tour of South America on Saturday against the Pumas once again, at the José-Amalfitani stadium in José -Amalfitani of Buenos Aires.

For this last outing, the Blues staff opted for the team that beat Argentina in the first match, apart from Jegou and Auradou, as well as fullback Melvyn Jaminet, sent back to France after the publication of a video on his Instagram account presenting racist threats.

"For the group, for the delegation, it was experienced as a trauma. There was a form of astonishment when we heard the news and when the police arrived at the hotel in Buenos Aires, the coach of the XV of France declared on Tuesday Fabien Galthié.

The president of the French Rugby Federation Florian Grill, who met the two players in Buenos Aires on Tuesday, hopes that justice will go quickly. Present in Mendoza, he indicates that "the lawyer was able to present (to the Mendoza public prosecutor's office) several points which question the initial statement and which will call into question several statements".