Argentine Woman Raped and Beaten by French Rugby Players: Lawyer

Alleged Victim Suffered "Fierce" Violence, Sustaining Multiple Injuries

An Argentine woman accusing two French national rugby players of rape suffered "fierce" violence at the hands of her assailants, sustaining multiple injuries, her lawyer told AFP on Wednesday.

The pair, 20-year-old Hugo Auradou and Oscar Jegou, 21, are waiting to be transferred from Buenos Aires to the city of Mendoza where the alleged crime took place and where they will be questioned by prosecutors. They have not been charged with a crime.

Natacha Romano , the lawyer representing the 39-year-old complainant, sat down with AFP to lay out her client's allegations.

Brutal Attack Alleged

Romano said the woman claims to have accompanied one of the men to a hotel in central Mendoza in the early morning hours of Sunday after they met at a nightclub. Once they entered the hotel room, the woman "realized that the invitation for a drink was a ruse" and asked to go to the restroom.

The man "realized that she wanted to escape, immediately grabbed her, threw her on the bed, started to undress her and savagely started to beat her with his fist," said Romano of her client's account of the alleged incident.

The woman has bruises on her face, back, breasts, legs and ribs to prove the beating she took, said the lawyer, as well as various bite and scratch marks.

"The violence was fierce," said Romano . "There is more than one crime to investigate."

Repeated Rape Alleged

The complainant said she was choked until she nearly passed out, at which point the rape began. A second assailant entered the room later and joined in the rape and the beating, according to the victim's account.

Romano says her client claims to have been raped at least six times over a period of hours by the first assailant, and once by the second.

Consent Disputed

Auradou and Jegou have claimed through their defense lawyer, Rafael Cuneo Libarona, that they had consensual sex with the accuser. However, Romano told AFP that "the overwhelming proof that there was no consent is the victim's body" and the wounds it bears.

Mendoza prosecutor Daniela Chaler told local media on Tuesday there were "convincing elements" in the statement the woman made and that her injuries were compatible with her version of events, although they were not "necessarily exclusive" to sexual assault.

Emotional Trauma for French Team

The French Rugby Federation (FFR) said the players have denied any coercion or violence, and stressed the importance of giving them an opportunity to make their case. Federation president Florian Grill told reporters the players have "a quite different version" of events to that of the woman, with "a lot of inconsistencies."

France head coach Fabien Galthie said news of the accusation had been "a trauma" for the squad, which on Wednesday beat Uruguay 43-28 in their second of three games on the South America tour.

If charged, the players could face up to 20 years in prison under Argentine law for sexual assault with the use of violence.