October 26 – France and Real Madrid star Karim Benzema faces sentencing on November 24 if he is found guilty of his involvement in an attempt to blackmail his former national teammate Matthieu Valbuena. His lawyers are demanding the case be thrown out but a potential prison sentence looming if he is found guilty.
Benzema could reportedly face up 10 months in jail prison and/or a €75,000 fine should the prosecution be successful in their case over the so-called sex tape trial.
In 2015, Valbuena is alleged to have been the victim of an extortion attempt over a video of a sexual nature in which he appeared. Blackmailers threatened to make the tape public and it’s alleged that Benzema acted as an intermediary between the group with police having recorded phone calls between Benzema and the rest of the group.
Lawyers representing Benzema – excluded from the France international setup from 2016 until earlier this year — believe he should be acquitted claiming Valbuena has only himself to blame and that the prosecution had been driven by media interest in the case.
“Valbuena is a victim of his acts, given that it was he himself who filmed the sex tape with which they later tried to blackmail him,” the defence team argued at the trial.
Benzema’s lawyers further claim the prosecution had failed to provide evidence to convict their client in an attempt to blackmail.
“One can ask what really interests French people in this case? Sex? Money? Football? Not the judicial element in any case,” lawyer Antoine Vey told the trial.
Benzema has always denied the allegations, maintaining that he was only attempting to help Valbuena, having warned him that he was dealing with “very, very heavy criminals” when the pair were together at the French national team’s training centre.
But Valbuena told the court that the affair – which saw him and Benzema excluded from the national team – had left him feeling “frightened” and fearful for his career.
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