Escoffier trial: sailor faces four sexual assault charges
Skipper Kevin Escoffier, 46, appeared before Lorient tribunal on Monday facing four alleged sexual assault charges committed between 2017 and 2023. He contests all the accusations.
Escoffier trial: sailor faces four sexual assault charges
According to France Info, navigator Kevin Escoffier is to answer on Monday 9 November before the Lorient criminal tribunal for four sexual assaults. Four women have filed complaints for having suffered touching between 2017 and 2023. The skipper, aged 46 and known for his dramatic rescue off the Cape of Good Hope during the Vendée Globe in 2020, contests all the accusations.
The four complainants report a similar modus operandi: during promotional evenings or moments spent in bars in Lorient, Newport, Melbourne and Brazil, Escoffier allegedly slid his hands onto the intimate parts of these women in a context marked by alcohol consumption. The testimonies of these navigators and collaborators of the skipper were widely publicised and triggered a #MeToo within the sailing community, highlighting practices deemed widespread in this sector which has remained very male-dominated.
Escoffier's lawyer, Ms Virginie Le Roy, announced on Monday that she would request the annulment of the proceedings. She denounces an investigation conducted "over coffee", based exclusively on "gossip". According to her, 93% of the charges come from indirect witnesses and no witness for the prosecution has been heard in favour of her client. She also emphasises that Escoffier has, since the revelation of the complaints in 2023, been excluded from competitions and "lost everything" before even a judgment.
"We simply wanted to make an example," the lawyer continues. Escoffier faces up to five years in prison. The feminist collective Nous Toutes has called for a gathering outside Lorient tribunal on Monday morning.
Source: France Info