Hakimi Faces Crucial Hearing in Versailles for Rape Case Trial
Achraf Hakimi’s future, on and off the pitch, hangs on a courtroom a short drive west of Paris.
The 27-year-old Morocco international, a mainstay for PSG and a World Cup history-maker for his country, is due before the Versailles appeals court in a hearing that will determine whether he must stand trial on a rape charge as it currently stands, or whether the case is reclassified as a lesser offence.
If the appeal is rejected and the charge is not reduced, the defender will face trial on a date yet to be set.
The case stems from a complaint filed in February 2023. A woman, then 24, told police in Val-de-Marne, southeast of Paris, that Hakimi raped her. He was formally charged and placed under judicial supervision, and in February this year the investigating judges decided to send the case to trial.
Hakimi denies any wrongdoing.
His lawyer, Fanny Colin, contacted by AFP, declined to comment ahead of the appeals hearing. During the earlier referral hearing, though, she attacked the foundations of the case, arguing that “the accusation rests solely on the word of a woman who obstructed all investigations, refused all medical examinations and DNA tests (and) refused to give the name of key witnesses.”
According to a police source at the time of the complaint, the plaintiff said she first came into contact with Hakimi via Instagram in January 2023. She then travelled to his home in a taxi ordered by the player.
Once there, she alleged, Hakimi kissed her and touched her without consent before raping her. She told police she managed to push him away and text a friend, who came to pick her up.
The legal process now runs in parallel with a high-profile sporting calendar.
Hakimi, signed by PSG in 2021 from Inter Milan after earlier spells at Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund, is expected to line up for the French champions when they face Arsenal in the Champions League final on May 30 in Budapest.
He also remains central to Morocco’s plans. The right-back, who helped lead the Atlas Lions to an historic World Cup semi-final in 2022 – the first time an African and Arab side had reached the last four – is certain to be in the squad when they open their next World Cup campaign against Brazil on June 13 in New Jersey. Group C also includes Scotland and Haiti.
As the appeals judges in Versailles weigh the legal arguments, Hakimi continues to train, to play, and to prepare for a Champions League final and another World Cup run, all under the shadow of a case that could yet redefine his career.
