Julio Iglesias faces new complaint over sexual assault and forced labour
Two former employees of the Spanish singer have filed a new complaint alleging sexual assault and forced labour, after an initial case was dismissed.
Two former employees lodge complaint against Julio Iglesias in Spain
Two former employees of singer Julio Iglesias have filed a new criminal complaint against him for sexual assault and forced labour, according to TF1 Info. The announcement was made on Friday by the NGO Women's Link Worldwide, which represents the two women.
The complainants — a housemaid and a physiotherapist — allege they were victims of sexual assault and mistreatment whilst working at properties belonging to the singer in the Bahamas and the Dominican Republic in 2021.
An initial complaint had been filed in January, but Spanish courts had dismissed it, determining they lacked jurisdiction over offences committed abroad. Julio Iglesias, 82, had then described the accusations as "absolutely false", claiming he had never "assaulted, coerced or disrespected any woman whatsoever".
The new complaint, filed on Thursday, targets "sexual harassment and sexual assault" as well as "forced and degrading labour". Women's Link Worldwide argues that Spanish courts now have jurisdiction under a law allowing the prosecution of offences committed abroad where there are relevant links to Spain.
"If a Spanish person commits an offence outside Spain, Spain can try them, provided that the same act is also considered an offence in the country where it occurred", the NGO stated in a statement. The executive director of Women's Link, Jovana Rios Cisnero, added: "The Spanish state is obliged to guarantee equal access to justice, regardless of the identity of the person in question."
In January, the public prosecution service had specified that its dismissal did not prevent the two women from approaching other courts.
Julio Iglesias, performer of hits such as "I Haven't Changed" or "Manuela", has sold more than 300 million records over a career that began in the 1970s. An icon of Spain's democratic transition after the Franco dictatorship, he had built his global image around the character of the "Latin lover".
Source: TF1 Info