Prosecutors in the South American country say two French international rugby players have been charged with the aggravated rape of a woman after a match in Argentina.
Hugo Auradou, 20, and Oscar Jegou, 21, are accused of raping a 39-year-old woman after France beat Argentina on Saturday.
She accused them of raping her multiple times and beating her in a hotel room in the city of Mendoza.
The couple, who chose not to testify at the city hearing, said they had consensual sex with the woman and denied rape. They will remain in custody while authorities investigate further.
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The woman alleges the attack took place at the Diplomatic Hotel, where French players and staff are staying during their South American tour.
Her lawyer said she left the nightclub with one of the men and went with him to a hotel room, where she alleges she was seduced “at least six times” by one of the men and once by the other.
Ms Romano told AFP her client had suffered “intense” violence, with multiple injuries to his face, back, chest, legs and ribs as well as bite marks and scratches.
Ms Romano said the woman was held against her will for hours and attempted to escape several times.
Her client went to hospital on Thursday after feeling mentally and physically unwell due to the incident and is now being treated at a medical facility, she added.
On Friday, a lawyer for the players said his clients were confident in their version of events.
“They are very sure of their testimony, they are calm because they know they are innocent, but of course they are nervous about the whole situation they are going through,” German Hnatow told reporters.
On Wednesday, another lawyer said the “sexual intercourse” was consensual.
“There were witnesses who saw her leave. [the hotel]. There were cameras that witnessed her leaving. It is clear that there are no injuries seen in the footage,” Mariano Cuneo Libarona told journalists.
The president of the French Rugby Federation (FFR) Florian Gill, who is currently in Argentina, also told AFP that the players had “a completely different version of events”.
“We are not judges. We are not investigators. But we think that the Argentine justice system should consider this case very quickly,” he said.
Mr Auradou and Mr Jegou were replaced by lock Mickael Guillard and winger Judicael Cancoriet for Saturday’s second match against Argentina in Buenos Aires.
