French star Patrick Bruel denies accusations of rape and sexual assault

"“I have never forced a woman,” the singer, 67, wrote in French. “I've never drugged, manipulated or sought to subjugate anyone. I have never used my fame to abuse anyone or obtain non-consensual relationships. People may say that this message is complicated, in a society where everything must be black or white. In reality, it is simple: I have never forced a woman. And I never wanted to hurt anyone. And if I may have hurt anyone, I sincerely regret it.”"

"On Sunday, AFP reported the Paris prosecutor's office announcing that Bruel was the subject of four complaints involving sexual violence in France and that the proceedings would be grouped together."

"“I met Flavie Flament in the 1990s. My career had begun and she was just starting hers. We crossed paths, we saw each other again a few times, and we had a brief relationship together,” he said. “This relationship was neither violent nor coercive nor underhanded. There was neither rape nor drugs. I never mistreated her, nor abandoned her outside a 'seedy hotel'.”"

"Those who had known them over the years, he added, “never perceived anything between us other than a closeness born of shared memories”. Bruel said he did not understand why Flament was now “telling a different and sordid story”. “I know simply that this story is false,” he said."

Patrick Bruel denied multiple allegations of rape and sexual assault tied to several complaints under investigation by French prosecutors. He said he hesitated before speaking and chose to reserve his words for the justice system. He stated he never forced a woman, never drugged or manipulated anyone, and never used fame to obtain non-consensual relationships. He also addressed allegations by Flavie Flament, saying they had a brief relationship in the 1990s that was neither violent nor coercive, with no rape or drugs. He denied mistreating her or abandoning her in a hotel setting and said people who knew them saw only closeness based on shared memories.

Read at The Independent