The Dominique Strauss-Kahn rumor mill has kicked into overdrive, with some claiming that the ex-IMF head’s supporters are trying to bribe his accuser not to testify. And then, of course, there’s the semen issue.
Last week, the New York Post claimed DSK’s alleged assault victim lived in a building set aside for people with HIV (her lawyer denied this). Now the paper is reporting that his friends are trying to pay off the woman’s family as a way to keep her off the stand. They quote an anonymous “French businesswoman with close ties to Strauss-Kahn and his family,” who claims that DSK’s associates have already contacted the accuser’s family members in Guinea and that a deal is imminent. The source says, “They already talked with her family. For sure, it’s going to end up on a quiet note.” She elaborates, “He’ll get out of it and will fly back to France. He won’t spend time in jail. The woman will get a lot of money.”
At this point it would be pretty hard for Strauss-Kahn’s case to end “quietly,” even if he’s acquitted, and the Post‘s source seems a little over-optimistic. The paper also notes that prosecutors say they have a case even if the maid decides not to testify. For instance, there’s DNA evidence. Maybe. Probably. Yesterday, the Times reported that material (presumably semen) had been found on the accuser’s clothes, bearing out her account of the alleged assault. Later, the New York Police Department seemed to deny the report, then clarified that they weren’t actually just denying, just denying that they had told the Times about it. All this seems confusing, but it’s pretty consistent with DSK’s reported defense. If his lawyers are claiming his encounter with the maid was consensual — and not that it never happened — odds are they knew the police might find DNA. Obviously it’s far too early to say how the trial will go, but we’re willing to bet this scandal has gone past the point where a few payouts will make it all go away.
Strauss-Kahn’s Pals Bid To Pay Off Woman’s Kin [NY Post]
Strauss-Kahn DNA Reportedly Found On Hotel Maid’s Clothes [Slate]
Evidence Said To Tie Ex-I.M.F. Chief To Housekeeper [NYT]