Accused of rape, Islamologist Tariq Ramadan was acquitted by a Swiss court

Tariq Ramadan was acquitted. The Swiss court, which tried him for rape and sexual coercion, estimated on Wednesday May 24 that there was no evidence against him. At the announcement of the verdict, pronounced in a room full of journalists, the Swiss preacher smiled and was hugged by one of his daughters. The complainant, aged 57, left the room before the end of the reading of the verdict. Three years in prison, half of which is firm, was requested last week by the prosecutor.

The plaintiff’s lawyers have immediately announced to appeal. Fifteen years after the events, the complainant asserts that he subjected her to brutal sexual acts accompanied by beatings and insults, on the evening of October 28, 2008, in a hotel room in Geneva. During the three days of hearing, the defense tried to demonstrate the innocence of Tariq Ramadan by ensuring that there was no scientific evidence.

In France, the Islamologist, 60 years old today, is also accused of rape committed between 2009 and 2016 on four women, a case which triggered his fall in 2017. The Paris prosecutor’s office requested in July his referral to an assize court and it is up to the investigating judges to order a trial or not.