FC Bayern pro Franck Ribery and his colleague Karim Benzema can breathe easy. A court in Paris acquitted the two football stars from the accusation of having had sexual relations with a minor knowingly prostitutes.

The Court thus followed the requirement of the indictment. Come to an end, the process was already in the past week, only the delivery of the judgment was last pending.

Prosecutor Jean-Julien Xavier-Rolai had already admitted last week that he had no evidence that the French international had known the age of escort Zahia Dehar.  He therefore plead for a “plain and simple acquittal”.

Ribéry was accused of then 17-year-old paid 700 euros for sex in a Munich hotel 2009. He claimed to have not known the girl’s age. This was confirmed at the police interview also Zahia Dehar, who now works as a lingerie designer. Ribéry denies having had “paid sex”.

Process to “Zahia Dehar” Sex Scandal:Acquittal as no surprise

Benzema looked again be exposed to the reproach of having slept in 2008 with the former call girl. Zahia Dehar assured, they’ve got then 500 euro. The Real Madrid striker denied, however, ever having met her.

A surprise is the acquittal of the two athletes, however, is not: In November 2011, the prosecution had put the case to the file and want to terminate the proceedings. Even then, the investigators had come to the conclusion that the footballer could not know the true age of Zahia Dehar. An investigating judge nevertheless ordered a process.

For relationships with underage prostitutes, the law provides for a prison sentence of up to three years and a fine of up to 45,000 euros in France. Both Ribery and Benzema were not present at the hearing.

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