After 10 years of legal proceedings, the singer Saâd Lamjarred has finally been convicted of the rape of Laura Prioul in 2016.
Ten years of legal proceedings
Ten years of legal proceedings. Ten years in which Laura Prioul had to face social media and the hatred of all the singer’s fans, who accused her of trying to make money off the back of his fame.
For ten years she has maintained that, yes, the singer was under the influence of alcohol and drugs, that he had brutally assaulted her, and that going into his bedroom did not mean she consented to these acts of brutality.
Ten years is exhausting. This is no doubt why the victim’s entourage resorted to ‘attempted blackmail’. Five people demanded three million euros from him in exchange for withdrawing the complaint. It was also suggested that the complainant should refrain from giving evidence at the Assize Court.
Ten years of legal proceedings, during which he continued to sing. Unlike other singers, who where forced to cancel their concerts. For Saâd Lamjarred, there were very few cancellations.
Ten years of lawyers’ fees, starting with Maître Dupont-Moretti, ‘the King’s lawyer’, who stepped down to be replaced by Maître Jean-Marc Fédida, Maître Thierry Herzog, and then Maître Marie Burguburu (a woman always looks good when defending a rapist). All of them are leading lawyers who do not work on legal aid or as court-appointed counsel.
And that’s not all, as he intends to appeal to the Court of Cassation.
Ten years in prison
That is four years longer than the sentence handed down at first instance in 2023.
That is two years more than the sentence sought by the public prosecutor.
The trial was held in camera. We will therefore never know what prompted the judges to impose such a harsh sentence.
Perhaps the fact that Saâd Lamjarred continues to maintain his innocence, despite the medical reports which attested to the severity of his injuries.
Perhaps the age difference between the young woman, who was 20 at the time, and the singer, who was 31.
Perhaps all the accusations levelled against France – of conspiracy, of “revenge”… such as those reported at the time by Jeremstar, a social media commentator
Perhaps the other rape case – the one in Saint-Tropez in 2018 – which proved that he was a “compulsive rapist”. In that case, he was sentenced to five years in prison and has lodged an appeal.
In any case, that is the explanation given by Laura Prioul’s lawyer:
In any case, he was sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment, with immediate remand in custody.
He certainly won’t serve 10 years. Good behaviour, a reduced sentence, and so on… probably five years at most.
But he was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
Justice has been done.
The unease surrounding this case
Admittedly, it began a year before the #MeToo movement gained momentum.
But it is also symptomatic of what I call ‘rape culture’ in Morocco.
A famous, handsome (?) man CANNOT be guilty of rape. It’s the other person, ‘the slut’, who was happy to go along with it and who is to blame.
In the case of Saâd Lamjarred, the King immediately announced that he would cover his legal costs. He sent his consul, who attended the hearings, to the prison (this is a consular duty, but how many imprisoned Moroccans does he make this trip for?)
A Moroccan woman asked the King for financial assistance because her income had fallen.
Laura Prioul was bombarded with insults on social media.
Whether you are powerful or wretched, man or woman…
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