Former French CEO Faces New Human Trafficking Accusations in Morocco

Four new complaints for "human trafficking, sexual harassment and verbal and moral violence" against Jacques Bouthier. According to Karima Salama, lawyer for the Moroccan Association of Victims’ Rights, representing the four Moroccan women - former Assu 2000 employees - aged 26 to 28, the alleged facts would have occurred between 2018 and early 2022. "An investigation has been opened and we trust the justice system," she specified during a press conference in Tangier.

On Friday, three of the plaintiffs testified anonymously. According to them, they were fired after refusing to "give in to the harassment and blackmail" of Jacques Bouthier "and his accomplices among the French and Moroccan managers" of his company in Tangier. They claimed to have been victims of repeated sexual harassment, employment blackmail and intimidation, in a climate of social precariousness. "Jacques Bouthier has no morals or ethics, he is convinced that with his financial power he can do anything with impunity," denounced the president of the association and lawyer Aïcha Guellaa, adding that there are witnesses, tangible evidence and exchanges on WhatsApp and email.