Loire-Atlantique senator Joël Guerriau (Les Indépendants, center right), suspected of having drugged a member of parliament with a view to sexual assault, was indicted on Friday by a Parisian investigating judge and placed under judicial supervision, announced his lawyer. At the end of his police custody, Joël Guerriau was indicted for “administering, without the knowledge of (MoDem MP) Sandrine Josso, a substance likely to impair his discernment or control of his actions, in order to commit rape or sexual assault and possession and use of substances classified as narcotics,” said Me Rémi Pierre Drai in a press release sent to AFP.
“He will be able to explain the facts”
Requested by AFP, the Paris prosecutor’s office confirmed this indictment and added that the judicial control imposed on the senator prohibited him “from going to the victim’s home” and “from entering into contact with the victims and witnesses” . The indictment of the elected official comes after a two-hour confrontation organized on Friday between Joël Guerriau and Sandrine Grosso, elected official for Loire-Atlantique, in the premises of the 3rd district of the Paris judicial police.
The complainant would have felt ill after having a drink on the night of Tuesday to Wednesday at the Parisian home of the senator, aged 66, with whom she did not have an intimate relationship, according to the public prosecutor. “Joël Guerriau is now free and will be able to explain the facts,” his counsel rejoiced in the press release. He “will also fight to demonstrate that he never wanted to administer to his work colleague and long-time friend a substance to abuse her” and “will demonstrate that it was a handling error which caused the dramatic inconvenience suffered by her fellow MP,” added Me Drai.
“Joël Guerriau is not a predator, he is not a fan of chemical submission, he is an honest, respected and respectable man who will restore his honor and that of his family,” concluded the lawyer. Contacted by AFP, the plaintiff’s lawyer, Me Julia Minkowski, announced that she would become a civil party on Monday.