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Belgium Opens Inquiry Into Patrick Bruel as Accusations Mount Across Borders

Prosecutors in France and Belgium are now probing separate complaints from 1997, 2010 and 2012.

Overview

  • Belgian prosecutors opened a judicial inquiry Wednesday after a late‑March complaint by press officer Karine Viseur alleging a 2010 assault at RTBF in Brussels.
  • The Paris prosecutor opened a preliminary probe Tuesday based on Daniela Elstner’s March 12 complaint alleging an attempted rape and sexual assault in 1997 in Acapulco.
  • A separate investigation in Saint‑Malo has been under way since a September 30, 2024 complaint accusing Bruel of a 2012 rape during the Dinard film festival.
  • Media reports this week added fresh accounts, with ELLE publishing four new testimonies Monday, two now formal complaints including one for rape, and one previously closed case sent for review.
  • Bruel denies any coercion through his lawyer and remains presumed innocent, while more filings are possible as Mediapart and ELLE continue to gather testimonies.