Karim Benzema, French international and Real Madrid player, faces a trial that will begin this Wednesday and for which he could be sentenced to five years in prison and a fine of €75,000.
The Real Madrid striker will have to present a defense in court in Versailles, this Wednesday, for alleged complicity in the blackmail of his former team-mate, Mathieu Valbuena, in 2015.
The player who is currently experiencing a good sporting moment, being cited as a candidate to win the Ballon d’Or at the end of November, saw his image shaken and his departure from the French national team for five years. The athlete was absent from Euro 2016, in which France was a finalist having lost to Portugal, and from the 2018 World Cup, in which the French team won the title.
Amid a busy sports schedule, the player’s lawyers did not confirm his presence at the hearing. The player has a vital clash in the Champions League, in which he will face Shakhtar Donetsk, and the derby against Barcelona. “Obviously he must be released,” said Benzema’s lawyer, Antoine Vey.
The sex video involving Valbuena is the cause for which Karim Benzema will face justice, and the prosecution indicates that he has agreed with those who blackmailed the former Marseille athlete and former teammate of Benzema.
Antoine Vey denies the existence of evidence that could convict his client. “There is no material element that directly involves Mr. Benzema, except for an extremely late and non-spontaneous feeling on the part of the complainant (Mathieu Valbuena). Mr. Benzema’s referral to the courts is quite incomprehensible. It is obvious that he must be released from the heads of the prosecution», he explained.
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