The court of Versailles on Wednesday morning sentenced Karim Benzema to a suspended prison sentence of one year and a fine of 75,000 euros in the infamous sex tape case. The prosecution ruled that Benzema was complicit in an attempted blackmail of Mathieu Valbuena, who was threatened with the leak of an intimate video. The judge largely accepted the requirement of ten months’ probation and a fine of 75,000 euros.
Benzema was suspected of encouraging Valbuena to pay money to blackmailers in 2015 who threatened to distribute intimate images of Valbuena. The Real Madrid striker was Valbuena’s teammate at the time for the France national team. The attacker, who is currently under contract with Olympiacos, was reportedly asked to transfer 150,000 euros to a friend of Benzama’s to prevent the sex tape from leaking. Benzema has always claimed to be innocent. His request to stop the investigation was not granted by the French justice.
Benzema’s lawyer immediately announced on Wednesday that he would appeal against the suspended sentence of one year and a fine of 75,000 euros. “We are completely surprised by this ruling. We will appeal, that is necessary. Then he will be acquitted.”
Due to the scandal, national coach Didier Deschamps decided to no longer call up Benzema for the national team. For six years, the Real Madrid striker was persona non grata with lesson Bleus, but in May of this year Benzema made his comeback in the national team and as a result he also went to the European Championship with France last summer. The French federation already reported last month through president Noël Le Graët that Benzema can simply remain A-international if convicted. That decision is up to Deschamps.
Valbuena admitted in court last month that he was first contacted by Djibril Cissé, who warned him of the existence of the video in question. “I never thought of giving money so that this video wouldn’t come out,” Valbuena said. “I felt I was in danger and my instinct was to press charges. Soccer is my life. I knew that if this video came out, I would be in trouble with the French national team.”
One of the alleged blackmailers defended himself. “I saw the video, we laughed about it, I sent it around to everyone, not just Karim Benzema. Djibril Cissé was also involved. Many players from France have seen the video. There was no blackmail, we didn’t ask for money,” he was quoted as saying by BFMTV. Defendant Youness Houass insisted in court that he never asked Valbuena for money to prevent the sex tape from leaking. “I was just inquiring”, only to confirm that he exchanged calls and texts with Valbuena.
Prosecutors say Valbuena received an initial call in early June 2015 threatening to reveal the sex tape while he was at the French squad’s training center in Clairefontaine. The anonymous caller said he “wanted to come to an arrangement” with Valbuena and told him to name a middleman. Prosecutors allege Benzema was used by the alleged blackmailers to convince his teammate to pay. The 33-year-old attacker was therefore charged with complicity in attempted blackmail.
Valbuena also explained last month the events of October 6, 2015, when Benzema approached him in Clairefontaine to discuss the sex tape. The former Olympique Marseille player confirmed that Benzema continued to insist that Valbuena speak with his friend Karim Zenati. “He insisted I meet someone, but he didn’t give me his name.” Valbuena then outlined the difference between the Cissé situation and the Benzema situation. Cissé only alerted him to the video, never coming up with a solution, but Benzema advised him to talk to his friend. After the meeting, Valbuena said, he realized that Benzema was also part of the affair. “I felt like he wanted to scare me.”