Two France football stars have been detained and questioned by police as the inquiry into an alleged under-age prostitution ring goes on.
According to legal and police sources, Bayern Munich’s Franck Ribery and Karim Benzema of Real Madrid were brought to Paris police's vice squad headquarters early on Tuesday, having previously been questioned as part of the investigation earlier in the year.
Claims from Zahia Dehar, a former prostitute, that she had had sex with both players while still underage cast a cloud over the ultimately disastrous French World Cup campaign – though Benzema was not included in that squad by departed coach Raymond Domenech – and now the fresh news of their detainment sees football in the nation further stained.
Police have until Thursday morning to decide whether to release the duo, both of whom who have been linked with summer transfers.
Both players have denied wrong-doing. Ribery's lawyer Sophie Bottai told reporters that her client had no idea that the woman was below the age of 18 when he paid for her services last year, saying: "It is an intentional offence, he would have to know her age, which wasn't the case.
"She would have to look minor, which wasn't the case; she would have to tell him she was minor, which wasn't the case, since all over the press she claimed that she was adult and that she was more than 20 years old."
Benzema has also previously denied wrongdoing through his lawyer and Ms Dehar has since said that she did not reveal her age to either player at the time.