The summer of shame engulfing French football reached a new low today as two players were formally accused of soliciting an underage prostitute.
Franck Ribéry, 27, a midfielder for Bayern Munich and a member of the international side which left the World Cup in ignominy, and Real Madrid's Karim Benzema, 22, face up to three years in jail and a fine of €45,000 (£37,600) if convicted.
Both deny wrongdoing. Benzema has said he is "unaffected'' by the allegation by a former sex worker, Zahia Dehar, that she was solicited separately by the two when she was 16.
Ribéry is married and has two children. He has admitted having sex with Dehar, but insists he was unaware of her age.
In France, although the age for consenting sex is 15, soliciting a prostitute under 18 is a crime. The investigation into the trade allegedly going on in the Zaman Cafe, a late night bar on the Champs Elysées in Paris, was revealed in April when it was raided and more than a dozen women were arrested, including Dehar.
Shetold police she had been paid to have sex with several soccer stars, including Sidney Govou, another player for Les Bleus, as well as Ribéry and Benzema; however, Govou's alleged encounter was in March, by which time she was 18.
According to the testimony of Dehar and Ribéry, Dehar never told her clients she was underage – an important factor in such cases.
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