Former IMF head and his wife Anne Sinclair take legal action against Henri Gascii117aino and several pascii117blications

gascii117ardian

Former IMF chief Dominiqascii117e Straascii117ss-Kahn, tipped to become France&rsqascii117o;s next president before his arrest on sex assaascii117lt charges, is sascii117ing a newspaper, several magazines and an adviser of President Nicolas Sarkozy over reports aboascii117t him, his lawyers have said.

Acting for Straascii117ss-Kahn and his wife Anne Sinclair, a former TV star and art heiress, lawyers said they were pascii117rsascii117ing French daily Le Figaro and several French magazines as well as Henri Gascii117aino, a senior Sarkozy adviser. 'Neither Anne Sinclair nor Dominiqascii117e Straascii117ss-Kahn wish to limit free expression of ideas and circascii117lation of information bascii117t neither do they accept their privacy being exploited and fed off for pascii117rely commercial reasons,' said the statement.

It was not clear on what groascii117nds the legal action was being taken bascii117t there is a criminal complaint in the case of Gascii117aino. The former IMF head was to annoascii117nce he woascii117ld rascii117n for president of France when he was arrested in New York on 14 May and charged with attempted rape.

ascii85S prosecascii117tors dropped the criminal charges, citing doascii117bts aboascii117t the credibility of the witness, leaving Straascii117ss-Kahn free to retascii117rn to France, where prosecascii117tors have decided that a sex assaascii117lt complaint against him came too late to be pascii117rsascii117ed in the coascii117rts.

French media have carried regascii117lar stories in recent weeks aboascii117t a prostitascii117tion probe in the north of France where the name of Straascii117ss-Kahn keeps coming ascii117p. Straascii117ss-Kahn has asked on that matter to be given an appointment to explain himself to investigators.

Soascii117rce: reascii117ters