Russians who gang-raped M'sian student filmed attack on their phones

LONDON: Four wealthy Russians who used an iPhone to film themselves gang-raping a Malaysian student at an exclusive private college in London are facing jail terms.

The group had been in Britain for just two weeks when they carried out the horrific two-and-a-half hour attack on the Malaysian teenager at the £30,000-per-year (RM146,000) college.

The Daily Mail reported that the Russians, aged between 19 and 23, gave a sickening running commentary - and even filmed themselves boasting about what they were going to do to the victim the day before the attack.
 The prosecution fear that she may have had her drinks spiked as she was too drunk to consent.

Oleg Ivanov, 23, Norayr Davtyan, 22, Armen Simonyan, 19, and 23-year-old Gregory Melnikov all denied rape but were unanimously convicted by a jury at Woolwich Crown Court yesterday.

Davtyan described the girl as a "machine" and in the witness box referred to her as a "sl**".
The court heard that Ivanov expressed "pity" for the victim when they noticed she was crying but was talked out of it by his friend Davtyan.

Prosecutor Peter Clement said the four watched and encouraged each other during the attack, and gave a running commentary as to what they had done and what they were going to do to their fellow student.
They referred to her merely in the abstract as "her" or "she" and in the course of the incident one of the four even had to ask another, "What's her name?''

International water polo player Davtyan was holding a party at his dorm at the exclusive college in South London on Jan 21 this year which the girl attended. She had a shot of whisky at the party before going to a disco at the school.

Although there is no concrete evidence her drink was spiked, she felt "funny, dizzy and peculiar" and was clearly intoxicated before going back to the party and vomiting, then falling asleep. The next time she awoke, a man was having sex with her but she was unable to move, the jury heard.

She told police: "I just wanted him to stop, I couldn't wake up, I couldn't stand up, I felt really, really, really tired, I couldn't do anything. I couldn't move my hand...
"I just wanted to close my eyes, I just wanted to die, I did not consent to it."

The four men were all unanimously found guilty of rape at Woolwich Crown Court.
They sat emotionless in the dock as the verdicts against them were read out but a cry was heard from the family members in the public gallery.

Davtyan was convicted on two counts of rape, Melnikov was guilty of rape and attempted rape while Ivanov and Simonyan were both convicted of one count of rape.

They were remanded in custody until they are sentenced.

Sex Scandal: Parents react to lawsuit against Ratigan, Diocese

KANSAS CITY, Missouri - Parents of a young girl are suing the Kansas City-St. Joseph Catholic Diocese while others applaud the move.

The lawsuit, which will be filed Thursday, accuses the diocese, Bishop Robert Finn and Father Shawn Ratigan of a cover-up.Ratigan, currently in the Clay County Detention facing possession of child pornography charges, now faces a lawsuit along with his former employer.

“I’m not shocked because it seems like they were hiding a lot of things and now things are coming out,” said Thu Meng, a parent whose child attends St. Patrick’s School, where Ratigan was once assigned. The lawsuit comes from the parents of a 7-year-old girl. Lawyers, in a release, said the girl is a victim. Those lawyers said Ratigan, while working for a church in Easton, Missouri, took pictures of the girl when she was 2- or 3-years-old. The suit alleges Ratigan and Bishop Robert Finn, trying to avoid a church scandal, concealed sexually inappropriate photos found on Ratigan’s computer.

When asked for their opinions about the matter, parents leaving St. Patrick’s School did not mince words Wednesday.
“Good for them (the parents filing the lawsuit),” said Matthew Copple, a parent at the school. “The diocese needs to be held accountable.”
“I hope that the diocese is forced to change everything around, their policies, procedures, everything,” Meng said.
“The teachers here obviously saw something going on and tried to get something done about it and the diocese was silent,” Copple said.

That changed last week when a letter from the St. Patrick’s School principal surfaces. It detailed numerous allegations against Ratigan, even saying he “fit the profile of a child predator.” Members of the bishop’s staff knew about the letter for a year. However, they did nothing. Friday, Bishop Finn apologized.
“I have to change,” Bishop Finn said.
His words could not stop one lawsuit. However, St. Patrick’s parents hope the diocese response changes everything.

Dominique Strauss-Kahn bailed for $1m and ordered to face sex trial

Dominique Strauss-Kahn was bailed for $1 million on Thursday night, after agreeing to live under house arrest with his wife at a New York flat, where he will be watched around the clock by an armed guard.

 

Anna Sinclair, wife of Dominique Strauss-Kahn, leaves Manhattan Criminal Court with daughter Camille

 

Image 1 of 3

Dominique Strauss-Kahn appears in State Supreme Court for his bail hearing on May 19 Photo: GETTY

 

Image 1 of 3

Anne Sinclair, wife of Dominique Strauss-Kahn, arrives for his bail hearing Photo: AP

Mr Strauss-Kahn secured his release from Rikers Island prison as it was announced a grand jury had voted to have him prosecuted for the alleged sexual attack of a 32-year-old maid in his hotel room.

In a hearing at New York supreme court, Judge Michael Obus said he would allow the 62-year-old former head of the IMF out of jail despite the fact there was a "serious risk" he would try to flee.

He warned Mr Strauss-Kahn, who was arrested at JFK airport on a flight about to take off for Paris, that the consequences would be serious "if there is the slightest problem with your compliance".

Watched by his wife Anne Sinclair, 62, who held the hand of his daughter Camille, 26, Mr Strauss-Kahn showed little sign of emotion as the judge delivered his verdict.

He must move into an apartment in Manhattan rented by his wife, and "will be monitored 24 hours, seven days a week, electronically and by at least one armed guard", the judge said.

IMF Chief Resigns After Sex Attack Charges

The IMF chief charged with a sex attack on a hotel maid has resigned from his post ahead of a new bail hearing in New York.

Dominique Strauss-Kahn maintained his innocence in a formal letter to the organisation and said he was quitting with "infinite sadness".
"I think at this time first of my wife - whom I love more than anything - of my children, of my family, of my friends," he said.
"I think also of my colleagues at the fund - together we have accomplished such great things over the last three years and more.
"To all, I want to say that I deny with the greatest possible firmness all of the allegations that have been made against me."
The 62-year-old French citizen - who had been a strong contender for the country's presidency in 2012 - added he would devote "all my strength, all my time, and all my energy" to proving his innocence.

Click here to see pictures related to Dominique Strauss-Kahn's arrest

There had been widespread speculation over the future of Strauss-Kahn after he was arrested following the alleged attack at the Sofitel hotel in New York at the weekend.
He faced growing pressure to quit as further claims about his private life emerged – including allegations by writer Tristane Banon that he attempted to rape her in 2002.
He is due at a fresh hearing today, where his lawyers will propose $1m bail – which was earlier refused by a judge – and electronic tagging. He has also waived his extradition rights.
Strauss-Kahn is reportedly on suicide watch at New York's Rikers Island prison, although he is not believed to have attempted to harm himself.
His lawyer, William W Taylor, said on Wednesday that his client's mood was "serious but good".

Strauss-Kahn is said to be on suicide watch at Rikers Island

"He is a strong man and he's committed to seeing this through," he added.
There had been fears that without a suitable figure at the helm of the IMF, the organisation - designed to maintain stability in the world economy - could be thrown into disarray just as it attempts to tackle the eurozone debt crisis.
Among the possible candidates touted to replace Strauss-Khan is former prime minister Gordon Brown.
The IMF said it would discuss in the near future the process of selecting a new managing director. For now John Lipsky remains the acting chief.
Economics editor at The Independent Sean O'Grady told Sky News he did not think Strauss-Kahn had much choice over the resignation.
"The Americans call a lot of the shots at the IMF and once he lost their support I think it was only a matter of time and so it has been proved," he said.
Strauss-Kahn faces charges of committing a criminal sexual act, attempted rape, sexual abuse, unlawful imprisonment and forcible touching, all of which he denies.
The alleged victim, a 32-year-old widow from West Africa, testified on Wednesday before a grand jury.
It will decide in secret whether there is enough evidence to formally press charges.
A mugshot of Strauss-Kahn taken more than 24 hours after he was pulled from a plane at New York's JFK airport and detained on Saturday, showed him exhausted, his eyes downcast and half-closed.

Sex scandal hits IMF as French chief is probed over payoff to lover

A sex scandal is sweeping the International Monetary Fund at a time when it should be fully occupied with the global financial crisis.
IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn is under investigation for allegedly abusing his position after having a sexual relationship with a blonde employee who left with a payoff in August.
The inquiry will consider claims that the 59-year-old former French finance minister gave Piroska Nagy 'special treatment'.

Strauss-Kahn is under investigation over claims he abused his position after having a sexual relationship with Piroska Nagy

Yesterday his cheated wife Anne Sinclair, 60, one of France's most glamorous and respected TV journalists, broke her silence over the affair.
She dismissed it as a 'one-night stand which is now behind us', and said she was still in love with him.
The scandal has sparked a leadership crisis at the IMF. It comes 15 months after former World Bank president Paul Wolfowitz was forced to quit because of alleged favouritism to a junior staff member with whom he had a longstanding relationship.
It has caused huge embarrassment to French president Nicolas Sarkozy, who campaigned last year to install Strauss-Kahn, his former political rival, as the IMF's chief executive.
After British complaints that the job should go to a candidate from outside Europe, the appointment of France's former Socialist finance minister was viewed from Paris as a triumph.
The elegant Miss Nagy, an economist, had been working closely with her charismatic boss at the IMF's Washington headquarters when her Argentinian husband Mario Blejer found 'explicit' emails exposing the affair in January this year. Miss Nagy's lawyer said she accepted a buyout package in August, along with other IMF staff in a cost-cutting drive and was not pressured to leave.
She is now working in London for the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.
'She accepted a severance package that was generally available, and the terms were the same as were available to others of her grade and seniority,' said the lawyer.
'She received no special treatment of any kind.'

'Still in love': Anne Sinclair with her husband Strauss-Kahn

Investigators are examining claims that Strauss-Kahn either removed his lover from the IMF because her position within the organisation might embarrass him, or else sacked her as an act of retribution when she refused to continue their relationship.
They are also investigating claims that Miss Nagy's severance package was excessive for a person of her position.
Sources said members who had knowledge of the allegations might have been able to use that information in policy and funding disputes with their boss.
Strauss-Kahn has insisted he is co-operating with IMF investigators over the affair.
He said: 'It was an incident in my private life and at no time did I abuse my position as the fund's managing director.'
His wife Miss Sinclair, the daughter of a French mother and American father, married Strauss-Kahn in 1991 after she divorced journalist Ivan Levai. Strauss-Khan had been married twice before and the couple have several children with their previous partners.
She yesterday wrote on her blog that her husband was innocent of abusing his position.
'There is an internal inquiry at the IMF,' she said. 'We are calmly waiting for its conclusion. This shouldn't take too long.
'For my part, this one-night-stand is now behind us. We have turned the page. Can I add that we love each other as much now as when we first met.'
Strauss-Kahn had a high-flying political career during which, as finance minister from 1997-99, he was credited for the economic revival of France.
He was then forced to resign from Socialist Prime Minister Lionel Jospin's government after he was caught up in a corruption scandal.
Despite clearing his name, he failed to win the Socialist Party's nomination for the 2005 presidential election.
Commentators have always pointed to the flamboyant Strauss-Kahn's reputation as a ladies' man. Viewed in Paris as a 'champagne socialist', he has been linked with a number of glamorous women over the years.
A young, unnamed actress also recently claimed that Strauss-Kahn acted 'like a gorilla' after inviting her back to a Paris flat.
And Jean Quatremer, of French daily newspaper Liberation, last year wrote that Strauss-Kahn's 'only real problem' was his fondness for women.

Dying husband

Dying husband: I have something to tell you
Wife: Don't speak just rest
Husband: No, i must confess, I had sex with your sister and your best friend
Wife: Sssshh! I know, that's why I poisoned you!