ALBAWABA - Saad Lamjarred breaks down in court after shocking French prison sentence.
On Friday, a French court sentenced Moroccan singer Saad Lamjarred to five years in prison after finding him guilty of rape in a case dating back to 2018. The court also ordered him to pay €30,000 in compensation to the victim, in addition to €5,000 in legal fees.
Saad Lamjarred's Tears in Court
The verdict, issued by the Draguignan court, came after a week of arguments. The prosecution had sought a 10-year prison sentence for the Moroccan artist in the case, which has been the subject of widespread controversy for years.
According to French media, Lamjarred appeared visibly moved after the verdict was announced. He shed tears and embraced his wife and her mother in the courtroom. His lawyer, Christian Saint-Palais, declined to comment on the court's decision.
The court did not issue an arrest warrant for the Moroccan artist, as he attended the trial as a free man.
The incident dates back to 2018.
The case dates back to 2018, when Lamjarred met a young woman who was working as a waitress in a nightclub in Saint-Tropez, in southeastern France.
The plaintiff stated that she agreed to go with the Moroccan artist to his hotel for a drink before accusing him of raping her in his room. Lamjarred, however, maintained that the encounter was consensual.
In 2021, the investigating chamber of the Aix-en-Provence Court of Appeal upheld the decision to send him to trial, emphasizing that entering a man's room "does not constitute automatic consent."
Previous Accusations in France and Morocco
Saad Lamjarred has faced a series of similar cases in recent years. He was previously charged in Morocco in 2015 and in the United States in 2010.
In 2023, a French court sentenced him to six years in prison after convicting him in a 2016 assault case, following accusations by a young woman that he had raped and beaten her.
The appeal hearing was scheduled for June 2025 but was postponed due to legal proceedings against the plaintiff and her relatives.
