|
"Mr Paul Haggis was detained on Sunday with an
emergency measure issued by the Brindisi prosecutors and is now
under house arrest in Ostuni. He will be questioned by Thursday
by a judge who will have to decide whether or not to confirm the
detention," his Italian lawyer Michele Laforgia told Reuters.
Haggis was charged with forcing a woman to have sexual
intercourse over two days in Ostuni, Italy, public prosecutors
in Brindisi said in a statement on Sunday.
"Under Italian law, I cannot discuss the evidence. That said, I
am confident that all allegations will be dismissed against Mr.
Haggis," Haggis' personal attorney Priya Chaudhry said in a
statement.
Both lawyers said Haggis was pleading innocent and would
cooperate with authorities.
"A young foreign woman was forced to seek medical care"
following the sexual relations, the prosecutors said in the
statement.
They said that on Sunday after the alleged assault that the male
suspect accompanied the woman to Brindisi airport, where she was
left despite her "precarious physical and psychological
conditions". Prosecutors did not name Haggis and referred to the
suspect by his initials.
An investigative source told Reuters the unidentified woman will
be questioned in the coming 10 days in what is known in Italy as
an evidentiary incident, setting out evidence for a possible
future trial.
Haggis, 69, wrote "Million Dollar Baby" and co-wrote and
directed crime drama "Crash". He won two Oscars for "Crash" -
one for "Best Picture" and one for "Best Original Screenplay."
In 2018 he denied accusations of sexual misconduct made by four
women, including two who accused him of rape.
Haggis was in Ostuni to hold several classes at the Allora Fest,
a new film event being launched by Los Angeles-based Italian
journalist Silvia Bizio and Spanish art critic Sol Costales
Doulton that is set to run from June 21 to June 26.
The Allora Fest said they "learned with dismay and shock the
news", adding that the festival's directors "immediately
proceeded to remove any participation of the director from the
event".
(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington and Emilio Parodi in
Milan; Additional reporting by Francesca Landini in Milan;
Editing by Toby Chopra, Angus MacSwan and Lisa Shumaker)
[© 2022 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.
|
|
