Forced kiss: Luis Rubiales summoned Friday by the Spanish justice

Europe1 .fr with AFP 14:08 p.m., September 12, 2023

The former president of the Spanish Football Federation, Luis Rubiales, is summoned Friday by the justice in the investigation into his forced kiss to the player Jennifer Hermoso after the world title of the "Roja" women, announced Tuesday a court in Madrid. Luis Rubiales is summoned Friday at 12:00 (10:00 GMT) by an investigating judge "to be heard as an accused" and respond to the accusations of "sexual assault" brought against him, said in a statement the court of the National Court.

A preliminary investigation opened

This decision follows the green light given Monday by Judge Francisco de Jorge to the request of the prosecutor, which requested that proceedings be brought against Luis Rubiales for "sexual assault" and "offense of coercion" on Jenni Hermoso. The Spanish prosecutor's office, which opened a preliminary investigation on August 28 into the case, requested that Luis Rubiales be heard by the courts as an accused and Jennifer Hermoso as a victim, after receiving a complaint from the player.

The announcement of this summons by the justice comes two days after the resignation of Luis Rubiales, 46, who ended up throwing in the towel after refusing to leave his post since the beginning of the case by claiming that this kiss was "consensual" - which Hermoso categorically denies.

"I have faith in the truth"

Luis Rubiales, who was suspended at the end of August by the International Football Federation (Fifa), said he was resigning in particular to focus on his defense. "I have faith in the truth and will do everything in my power to make it triumph," he wrote in his resignation letter.

READ ALSO – Forced fuck: the Spanish prosecutor claims the indictment of Luis Rubiales for "sexual assault"

Since a recent reform of the Spanish penal code, a non-consensual kiss can be considered a sexual assault, a criminal category that includes all types of sexual violence. According to a spokeswoman for the prosecutor's office, Rubiales' sentences range from a fine to four years in prison.

The offense of coercion was also retained because, according to the prosecutor's office, "Jenni Hermoso explained that she was, with her entourage, the victim of constant pressure from Rubiales and her professional entourage to justify and approve the facts".