Strauss-Kahn case in jeopardy—New York Times

Dominique Strauss-Kahn. AFP

The New York Times story, citing two law enforcement sources close to the sensational case, was published shortly after the district attorney’s office announced that Strauss-Kahn would make an unexpected court appearance Friday.

It said prosecutors did not believe much of the story from the Guinean-born maid and suspect she has repeatedly lied to them since the alleged May 14 attack in the French politician’s Manhattan hotel room.

If confirmed, the doubts could mark a dramatic reversal in the case that has upended politics in France – where Strauss-Kahn was once seen as a likely presidential candidate – and prompted a change in leadership at the International Monetary Fund at a time of major upheaval in the eurozone.

Officials said that within a day of the alleged rape attempt, the maid was recorded speaking on the phone with a man jailed for possessing 400 pounds (180 kilograms) of marijuana and discussing the benefits of pursuing charges.

The Times said he was one of several individuals who made multiple cash deposits, totaling around $100,000, into the woman’s bank account over the last two years.

It said Friday’s unscheduled hearing would likely alter the strict bail conditions imposed on Strauss-Kahn, allowing him to travel within the United States, and that lawyers were discussing dismissing the felony charges.

“It is a mess, a mess on both sides,” one official told the respected daily, indicating that prosecutors would tell the judge they “have problems with the case.”

The district attorney’s office may ask Strauss-Kahn to plead guilty to a misdemeanor, but his lawyers would contest such a move, it added.

Among the discoveries, one official told the newspaper, are issues involving the asylum application of the 32-year-old housekeeper, and possible links to criminal activities, including drug dealing and money laundering.

Officials declined to reveal the reason for Friday’s hearing.

“No details about this appearance will be available until the defendant appears in court tomorrow,” the Manhattan District Attorney’s office said.

The former French finance minister had not been expected back in court until July 18.

Strauss-Kahn had posted $1 million bail and a $5 million bond when he was released in May, and agreed to remain under house arrest with an ankle monitor.

Earlier Thursday, French newspaper Liberation, citing Strauss-Kahn’s defense lawyers, said he was likely to challenge the legality of the identification lineup that took place a day after his arrest, during which the then-IMF director had been picked out by the alleged victim.

Strauss-Kahn had spent days in New York’s tough Rikers Island jail pending the bail package agreement, but is now awaiting trial in his luxury rental apartment in Manhattan’s TriBeCa neighborhood.

The Frenchman has denied all seven charges, including trying to rape the woman and sexually assaulting her when she came to clean his luxury suite.

Strauss-Kahn resigned from the IMF shortly after his arrest, setting off a battle for the leadership of the US-based multilateral lender, from which French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde ultimately emerged victorious.

In a separate article published Wednesday, the Times reported that Lisa Friel, head of the Manhattan district attorney’s sex crimes unit for nearly a decade, was leaving the post.

It was not immediately clear if the move was related to the Strauss-Kahn case. Friel had made an early court appearance as part of the case, but did not remain on the investigating team, the Times said.