Europe 1 with AFP / Photo credit: ANTONIN VINCENT / DPPI via AFP 15:25 p.m., November 10, 2023, modified at 15:25 p.m., November 10, 2023

The rapper Kaaris was acquitted by the criminal court of Évry of domestic violence of which his ex-girlfriend accused him. According to the latter, the rapper assaulted her in the garage of the artist's home, kicking and punching her while pulling out her nails.

The rapper Kaaris was acquitted on Friday by the criminal court of Evry of domestic violence of which he was accused by his ex-girlfriend. By releasing Kaaris, whose real name is Okou Gnakouri, the court followed the prosecutor's request. "We welcome this decision, which will allow our client to move on," Yassine Maharsi and Yassine Yakouti, the artist's lawyers, told AFP. "The cause of violence against women is far too noble to be exploited in this way," the councils added.

Kaaris disputed his ex-girlfriend's accusations

Kaaris assured the single judge of the court that he had never been violent towards women, as such behaviour was contrary to his values as a family man. The 43-year-old rapper was on trial for spousal violence with total incapacity for work (ITT) for more than eight days, as a legal recidivism. His ex-girlfriend and mother of his daughter, Linda P., accused him of having assaulted her on January 19, 2021 in the garage of the artist's home in Linas (Essonne), by kicking and punching her while pulling out her nails. In her complaint, she claimed that she needed "crutches and a support boot for two weeks".

>> ALSO READ – Fight against violence against women: a report denounces underfunding by the State

Kaaris disputed the charges and claimed that his ex-girlfriend had entered his home illegally by climbing a wall. However, the rapper decided not to file a civil suit on this part of the case that the prosecutor's office wanted to pursue.

Ex-girlfriend sentenced for damaging a vehicle

On the other hand, the court sentenced Linda P., who was not present at the hearing, to a 2-month suspended prison sentence for minor damage to the vehicle of Kaaris' current wife, Marion P. The latter also asked for a symbolic euro in damages.

The French rapper, born in Ivory Coast, found success with the release of his album "Or Noir" in 2013, which helped popularize in France the style of trap, a genre of rap from the southern United States. A former protégé of rapper Booba, he and Kaaris have since fallen out, a feud that led to a fight between the two men and their entourages at Orly airport in August 2018. Kaaris was given an 2018-month suspended prison sentence in October 18 for these offences. He is scheduled to perform in concert on February 17 at the Accor Arena in Paris.