Two years suspended prison sentence… Wissam Ben Yedder, 34, was found guilty of all the charges against him by the Nice criminal court, before which he was tried for sexual assault while drunk. The former striker of AS Monaco and the French team was also ordered to seek treatment and 6,500 euros in compensation for his victim (5,000 for moral damage and 1,500 for legal costs). Also punished for refusing to comply, the Riviera footballer was fined 5,000 euros and had his driving license suspended.
On October 15, the Nice prosecutor requested two and a half years in prison, including 18 months with a probationary suspension. On the night of September 6, 2024, the ex-scorer was arrested at his home in Cap-d’Ail after a complaint filed by a young woman of 23, who accused him of having tried to kiss her then of having masturbated in front of her in a car belonging to the player’s father.
On the stand, Ben Yedder explained that he did not remember the facts due to his high blood alcohol level and recounted his descent into hell. “It’s a bit of a difficult period, I had problems with my agents, with my wife… I had been drinking for three or four days,” he explained. I went on more and more, it intensified. I started having problems two years ago, I’ve had difficulties ever since. I was already drinking before, but in small doses and from time to time (…) I had been drinking and I don’t remember what happened. Because of alcohol, I have memory problems. I sincerely ask for forgiveness from the complainant, from my family…”
“I was under the influence of alcohol”
A few minutes before his arrest, he had refused to comply with the police who wanted to arrest him for driving while drunk. “I had two bottles, I wasn’t myself. I know it’s bad, I was under the influence of alcohol, I should have stopped but I wasn’t myself, he tried to justify. I’m a lonely person, I have trouble trusting people. I have been betrayed in quite a few stories. I took refuge alone in alcohol, but I realize that it was the worst mistake of my life. »
Ben Yedder was already under judicial supervision, after having paid bail of 900,000 euros to another young woman who accused him of rape during another evening during the summer of 2023. The case is still under investigation. The former Blues and AS Monaco striker, who is trying to treat his addiction and has not given up on the idea of playing football again, must also be tried at the end of December for psychological violence against his wife as part of divorce proceedings initiated since May 2023.