“In total, seven complaints are filed against (Jacques) Bouthier and his accomplices. The victims have decided to break the law of silence and others will also follow”Me Abdelfattah Zahrach told AFP during a press conference in Tangier (north of the country).
Until today, six Moroccans had filed a complaint. “A seventh suspect of French nationality has been placed in police custody. He will be presented during the day (Saturday) before the king’s attorney general”said Aïcha El Guella, lawyer and president of the Moroccan Association for Victims’ Rights (AMDV), which organized the press conference.
“Human trafficking”, “sexual harassment”, “indecent assault”…
On July 6, five employees of Mr. Bouthier were detained following complaints from former employees of branches of the Assu 2000 group (renamed Vilavi) in Tangier (north). A sixth accused was released.
They are notably accused of “human trafficking”, “sexual harassment”, “indecent assault” and “verbal and moral violence”, according to the plaintiffs’ lawyers.
The alleged facts occurred between 2018 and April 2022 in Moroccan subsidiaries of the brokerage giant in France.
“Jacques Bouthier and his collaborators are in fact an organized criminal gang”, said Saturday Me El Guellaa. The ongoing investigation “will reveal other victims and other accomplices”she assured.
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“Bullying Campaign”
Several complainants reported systematic sexual harassment, threats and intimidation within the French company in Tangier.
During the press conference, the young women – testifying on condition of anonymity, their identity protected by dark glasses – denounced a “bullying campaign in the media and on social networks” conducted by “the Bouthier clan”.
“The nightmare continues, they threatened us, insulted us and even tried to bribe us but without success!”said one of them.
Mr. Bouthier, a wealthy 75-year-old businessman, was indicted in May in Paris following a preliminary investigation opened in mid-March, with five other people, in particular for human trafficking and rape on minor.
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