Rape of a minor under a bridge in Nantes: a 28-year-old man indicted

A 28-year-old man, suspected of the rape of a 12-year-old girl in June under a bridge in Nantes, has been indicted and remanded in custody, the prosecution said Thursday evening, confirming information from a police source. “I confirm this indictment and this placement in pre-trial detention,” replied the public prosecutor of Nantes, Renaud Gaudeul, questioned by AFP.

On June 11, “a 12-year-old girl reported having been raped by an individual under a bridge in Nantes,” said the police source, confirming information from the newspaper Presse Océan.

According to Presse Océan, quoting an investigator, this minor, runaway, was alone at the level of the Willy Brandt bridge, when her presence was reported to the police by a witness leaving a nightclub, the day of the events around 5 o’clock in the morning.

“After very tedious research, a man (…) was identified on a photo by the victim,” said the police source, adding that he was arrested on June 28 at his home.

His DNA matches the traces found on the victim

During the search, the investigators “discovered the clothes he was wearing during the events and seen on the surveillance videos”, according to the same source. “His DNA matched the traces found on the victim. Interviewed several times, he recognized the facts “, in particular “a supposedly consented sexual relationship with the victim”.

The suspect assured investigators that the victim “told him to be 14 years old” when she is 12 years old. This man was indicted and a warrant of committal was issued against him, according to the police source. The suspect, “without criminal record”, is “28 years old”, of Afghan nationality and domiciled in Nantes, specified the prosecutor.