The team of New York lawyers representing the 32-year-old Guinean hotel maid who accused Strauss-Kahn of sexually assaulting her have asked Paris-based lawyer Thibault de Montbrial to help dig up previous victims of the French politician, news reports on Thursday stated. Montbrial, contacted by France 24 on Friday, declined to comment. But a day earlier, he told Reuters that he was chosen, because the legal team representing Strauss-Kahn’s accuser, led by Kenneth Thompson and Douglas Wigdor, were “looking for an attorney in France who had a certain amount of visibility and independence in France, where this is a very complicated case”. Earlier this month, the maid's New York-based lawyer Kenneth Thompson appealed on French television for other women with claims against Strauss-Kahn to come forward. Strauss-Kahn remains under house arrest in New York City and has pleaded not guilty to the charges of attempted rape, sex abuse, a criminal sex act, unlawful imprisonment and forcible touching. If he is convicted, he could serve up to 25 years in prison.
– The hotel maid accusing Dominique Strauss-Kahn of sexual assault has hired a well-known lawyer in France to look for other women who may have fallen prey to the banker, the Telegraph reports. “I was hired to see if we can contact other victims,” Thibault de Montbrial says, explaining that the maid’s US team wanted someone “who had a certain amount of visibility and independence in France, where this is a very complicated case.” The maid’s New York-based lawyer has already appeared on French television once to call for other victims to come forward. Her attorneys can’t directly get involved with the criminal case against the banker, but can help the prosecution. One French legal expert tells France 24 that the move could be a legitimate search for witnesses or “a big communications operation” to show her team is on the offensive.