Published Date:
04 July 2009
By Thierry Leveque
ALGERIAN singer Cheb Mami has been jailed for five years in France after being found guilty of forcing an attempted abortion on his former lover.
The 42-year-old star of Algeria's popular rai music, whose real name is Mohamed Khelifati, was tried for complicity in kidnapping, group assault on a vulnerable person, threatening a victim and administering harmful substances.
His agent Michel Le Corre was sentenced to four years. Arrest warrants have been issued for Hicham Lazaar and Abdelkader Lallali, who were sentenced to three and six years respectively in their absence.
Known globally for his Desert Rose hit with pop star Sting in 2000, Mami was arrested on arrival in France on Monday, having fled to Algeria two years ago. He was charged with arranging for his then partner, a French photographer, to be abducted in August 2005, a few days after she told him she was pregnant.
The court heard the woman was lured to Algiers and drugged before the abortion was attempted. It failed and she gave birth to a girl in March 2006.
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Last Updated:
03 July 2009 10:02 PM
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Source:
The Scotsman
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Location:
Edinburgh
