what we know about the events that took place on the night of Saturday to Sunday

The two French XV players Hugo Auradou and Oscar Jegou, accused of raping a woman in their hotel, beat the victim “savagely”, declared lawyer Natacha Romano.

Oscar Jegou and Hugo Auradou are preparing to appear before the Argentine courts in the city of Mendoza, where the incident took place. The two French rugby players are accused of raping a woman in their hotel, on the night of Saturday 6 to Sunday 7 July, after a match of the French XV. Pau second row Hugo Auradou, 20 years old, and La Rochelle third row Oscar Jegou, 21 years old, were taken into custody after their arrest on Monday, as part of the investigation opened for aggravated sexual violence.

According to Mendoza’s attorney general, Daniela Chaler, “the deposition [de la plaignante] was quite long, complete, detailed and corresponded, for the time being, to the forensic conclusions”. “The injuries are compatible with the victim’s account, but not necessarily exclusively from a sexual assault”added the magistrate on LV10 radio, who requested that the two players be placed in provisional detention.

The events took place in Mendoza, 1,100 kilometers from the capital, Buenos Aires. On Saturday evening, July 6, the French XV celebrated its victory (28-13) against the Argentinians. First, according to the story of the Parisianin the “paseo Aristides”, a party district with countless bars and pubs, describes the city’s location. At the Beerlin bar, an employee tells the French newspaper that she served the French players: “They left around 1:00-1:30 in the morning. (…) There were no women with them when they all left. But they had an abnormally high alcohol level.”she describes.

According to The Team, They then go to the “Wabi Fun Club, a chic nightclub (…) located outside the city”The complainant, a 39-year-old woman, daughter and sister of lawyers and originally from Mendoza, as reported by local media MDZ, arrived around 4:30 a.m. She was then “in the company of three friends, two women and a man” And “They could have accessed the players’ VIP lounge through employees”reports The Team. “She didn’t go out with the intention of meeting anyone.”her lawyer, Natacha Romano, told the Parisian.

According to the lawyer, the victim then went to the Diplomatic Hotel in Mendoza, where the French players and staff were staying. She was accompanied by one of the two players suspected of being involved, initially identified by the lawyer to some media as Oscar Jegou, but whom she “identify” finally like Hugo Auradou, in an interview with AFP. When they “enter the room, (…) she realizes that the invitation to have a drink is a trap”adds Natacha Romano. The complainant then asks “go to the bathroom, but he realizes that she wants to run away. He immediately grabs her, throws her on the bed, begins to undress her and starts to hit her savagely with a punch, the bruise of which is visible on the victim’s face. He suffocates her, to the point that she feels like she is going away.” She says that her client cannot then “no longer defend oneself” and declares to be “sexually abused by this first person”.

About an hour later, “enter the second, who is called Oscar”assures the lawyer, accusing him then of “same facts of violence and sexual abuse”. When the latter goes to take a bath, according to the same story, “Hugo continues to use her, giving her different blows”says Natacha Romano, who describes traces on her client’s body: “bites, scratches, blows to the breasts, legs and ribs marked in the back”. In total, she tries “five times to leave the room”according to the Argentine newspaper ClarinThe lawyer mentions “three or four” other attacks committed by Hugo Auradou, “until he finally fell asleep.” “It was only at 8:30 that she was able to get out of this situation and escape from the hotel.”

The lawyer for the two rugby players challenged this story. “Witnesses saw her go out [de l’hôtel]the cameras saw her come out, there are no signs of beatings, apparently, according to the recordings. She claims to have been beaten, the cameras say she was not,” has said Rafael Cuneo Libarona, who is also the brother of Argentina’s Justice Minister, Mariano Cuneo Libarona.

Oscar Jegou and Hugo Auradou have for their part “confirmed having had sexual intercourse with the young woman during the night but (…) firmly denied any form of violence”according to a statement from the French Rugby Federation published on Tuesday. These sexual relations were “consented”says Rafael Cuneo Libarona.

Opposite, the lawyer Natacha Romano evokes a “abuse with carnal access”the judicial definition of rape in Argentina, reads the Ministry of Justice website. In Argentine law, sexual violence (“abuso sexual”) can include acts ranging from sexual assault to aggravated rape, which could be punishable by up to 20 years in prison.