Prosecutors have confirmed that PSG footballer Achraf Hakimi has now been charged after an allegation of rape was made against him.
The right-back was named in the FIFPro Men’s World11 for his achievements and initial reports in France claimed that Hakimi was only made aware of the investigation around 90 minutes before Monday evening’s FIFA The Best award ceremony.
24-year-old Hakimi was accused by a woman who’s also 24, of raping her at his home in Paris on Saturday, February 25. The Morocco international’s lawyer Fanny Colin has previously insisted that the allegations are “false”.
Hakimi’s representative also confirmed in a statement released at the beginning of March that the footballer was making himself available to the authorities for the investigation. Prosecutors have now confirmed to AFP that he has been charged.
As per Le Parisien, the alleged victim reported the incident at a police station on Sunday evening but did not want to press charges against the footballer. Yet the public prosecutor’s office in Nanterre, a suburb of Paris, confirmed an investigation was opened.
PSG had also released a statement before the charges were made, which read “The club supports the player, who has firmly denied the accusations and trusts the justice system. Paris St-Germain is an institution that promotes respect on and off the pitch”
Hakimi’s Footballing Career
Born in Madrid, Hakimi started his career at Real Madrid and made 17 appearances for the Spanish club, winning the Champions League in 2018 and later spent time on loan at German side Borussia Dortmund during the 2018-19 and 2019-20 campaigns.
Hakimi later joined Italian club Inter Milan in the summer of 2020 and won the Serie A title during his only season at the club. He was permanently signed by PSG a year later and helped them win the Ligue 1 title last year. He has played 31 club games in all competitions this season.
Hakimi has also earned 61 senior caps for Morocco and was part of the squad that reached the semi-finals of the World Cup in Qatar 2022. It was the first time that an African nation had achieved the feat.
