AS Saint-Étienne announced, Monday, November 8, to file a complaint for "forgery" and "attempted fraud" against the Cambodian prince Norodom Ravichak, candidate for the acquisition of the club to which he would have provided a financial document fraudulent.

"The shareholders of ASSE have been engaged in a sale process since last April, entrusted to the KPMG cabinet which invited candidates for the club's takeover to submit their best offer on Monday, November 8," recalled the ASSE in a press release.

"This process has made it possible to highlight the lack of credibility of certain candidates. This is the case of Norodom Ravichak and his counsel Mr. Carlos Bejarano who provided a financial guarantee document of 100 million euros from a large international bank, which turns out to be a fake, "continued the Saint-Etienne club.

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To read again: Who is Norodom Ravichak, the prince who wants to buy AS Saint-Étienne

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"The shareholders therefore questioned their lawyers on the legal and judicial consequences resulting from the production of these false documents with a view to being authorized to participate in the transfer process. In view of their conclusions, it was resolved to file a complaint between the hands of the public prosecutor of Paris for acts of forgery, use of forgery and attempted fraud ", added ASSE.

"The shareholders intend to continue the sale process in order to sell the club to an investor representing all the pledges of seriousness and the financial standing necessary to give ASSE the means to fulfill its legitimate ambitions", continues AS Saint-Étienne.

"It is true that I officially applied for the resumption of AS Saint-Étienne", declared on RFI radio in September, the 47-year-old prince, grandson of former king Norodom Sihanouk and businessman.

"My goal today is to take care of Saint-Étienne", added Norodom Ravichak, saying he wanted to invest "in the long term" and ensuring that he could bring "sufficient means" to the takeover operation.

With AFP

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