Moroccan King Mohammed VI’s controversial support for singer Saad Lamjarred convicted of sexual assault in France
By: Hana Saada
ALGIERS– Morocco’s King Mohammed VI is once again at the center of media attention, as he publicly supports singer Saad Lamjarred, who was sentenced to 6 years in prison for sexually assaulting a young French woman in 2016.
According to the official Moroccan news agency, quoted by Algerie Focus, the king decided to pay Lamjarred’s defense costs and recommended French lawyer Eric Dupont Moretti to take charge of his defense.
Saad Lamjarred’s case has drawn the attention of social networks and media worldwide, due to his notoriety as a popular singer in Morocco and the Arab world. The case dates back to 2016, when young French woman Laura Priolle accused Lamjarred of raping her at his residence at the Marriott hotel on the Champs-Élysées in Paris.
Lamjarred’s 6-year prison sentence was widely covered by the French and foreign press. In a video clip released five years ago, Laura Priolle showed the marks of Lamjarred’s assault on her body, including a bite to the back and a punch to the face.
King Mohammed VI’s support for Lamjarred has drawn criticism, particularly given his involvement in other controversial cases involving Moroccan citizens in France. In 2019, the king had decorated Lamjarred with a royal medal, despite the accusations already hanging against him.
This is not the first time that lawyer Eric Dupont Moretti has been involved in a case involving King Mohammed VI and Morocco. In 2020, he pleaded in favor of the King and the Kingdom of Morocco.
Despite the support of the king and his lawyer, the case of Saad Lamjarred remains pending before the French courts, almost seven years after the facts. Lamjarred’s sentencing has sparked a debate about how celebrities are treated by the justice system, as well as the importance of taking sexual assault allegations seriously.
