Things just keep getting worse for Achraf Hakimi. Nearly a month after a 24-year-old woman alleged that the PSG defender raped her at his home in a Paris suburb, his wife Hiba Abouk has released a statement where she revealed that she is in separation proceedings with Hakimi which preceded the allegation. She added that she will always be on the victim’s side and that the charges brought “shame”.
What is the Achraf Hakimi case?
On Feb 28, the football world was rocked when a 24-year-old woman alleged that PSG defender Achraf Hakimi forced himself on her in his Paris home on Feb 25. After initial questioning by the prosecutors, Hakimi was indicted by the investigating judge and placed under judicial supervision. He was banned from contacting the victim.
Hakimi has maintained his innocence throughout the whole process. His lawyer, Fanny Collins, said Hakimi was the victim of “an attempted racket” and “firmly denies all accusations made against him”.
The club was put in a difficult situation but have so far backed their player. PSG said the club “gives its support” to the player. Hakimi has since returned to training and also played 90 minutes against Bayern Munich in the UCL fixture on March 9. Since that game, however, he has been left out of matchday squads for both of PSG’s Ligue 1 games, against Brest and Rennes. He played for Morocco during the international break.
Meanwhile, the woman’s side has insisted that there is “reliable and consistent evidence” to prove their allegations. Her lawyer has said she “maintains everything she said”.
What did Achraf Hakimi’s wife Hiba Abouk say?
On March 27, things worsened for Achraf Hakimi when his wife Hiba Abouk, also the mother of his two children, released a statement saying “she needed time to digest this shock”.
In a statement that is sure to cause tremors in PSG defender’s personal life, she revealed that they had agreed to end their relationship, with only divorce proceedings pending. She stressed that this step had come before the allegations came to light.
Below is her statement in full:
“Today I feel the duty to make this statement public to express my state of mind and clarify in first person the erroneous information that is circulating. And even when silence may favor certain sensitive topics or issues, I have the urgent need to explain myself, in order to be able to resume my personal, public and professional life in the least harmful and traumatic way possible, protecting my children above all, who are, of course, my absolute priority.
The reality is that it was some time ago that, after thinking about it a lot, the father of my children and I made the decision to end our relationship, long before the events in which I have been involved in the media and which I am totally oblivious. After making the decision to legally separate and stop living together, pending the divorce proceedings, who would have imagined that in addition to facing the well-known pain that a separation entails, and accepting the grief that the failure of a family project entails to whom I had given myself body and soul, I would have to face this ignominy. I have needed time to digest this shock.
It goes without saying that in my life I have always been and will always be on the side of the victims, therefore, given the seriousness of the accusation, we can only trust in the good conduct of justice. I beg you to respect my privacy and that of my children in these delicate circumstances. Thank you to all the people who have shown me their support, love and respect.”
At the time of writing, there has been no response from Achraf Hakimi’s side. PSG resume their season on April 2 with a game against Lyon in Ligue 1.