Paris Saint-Germain defender Achraf Hakimi is set to stand trial in France after the country’s highest judicial court rejected his appeal against a decision referring him to trial.
The Court of Cassation on Wednesday dismissed Hakimi’s challenge, confirming his referral to the departmental criminal court of Hauts-de-Seine over allegations of rape involving a woman in February 2023.
The legal development follows several stages in the case. An investigating judge initially ordered Hakimi to stand trial in February. The Moroccan international challenged the decision, but the Versailles Court of Appeal upheld his referral on June 19.
Hakimi subsequently took the matter to the Court of Cassation, seeking to overturn the decision to send him to trial. However, the court has now rejected his appeal, leaving the referral in place.
The allegations stem from an incident the woman said occurred at Hakimi’s home in Boulogne-Billancourt, near Paris, in February 2023. Hakimi has consistently denied the allegation and maintained his innocence throughout the legal proceedings.
Following the Court of Appeal’s decision in June, Hakimi said he was looking forward to the trial, saying it would give him an opportunity to publicly present his side of the case.
The Court of Cassation’s ruling only concerns whether the decision to refer Hakimi to trial should stand. It does not determine whether he is guilty or innocent.
The case will now proceed before the departmental criminal court of Hauts-de-Seine. A date for the trial has yet to be announced.
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