FRENCH football stars Karim Benzema and Franck Ribery are to face trial for the alleged solicitation of an underage prostitute, prosecutors have confirmed.The Real Madrid striker and Bayern Munich winger were first questioned two years ago over allegations that they had paid for sexual encounters with Zahia Dehar, who was under the age of 18 at the time. The scandal, which stemmed from a police investigation into a prostitution ring based around a Paris nightclub, rocked French football and destabilised Les Bleus ahead of their disastrous 2010 World Cup campaign.The pair are now set to face the charges along with six others after judicial papers were submitted by investigating magistrate Andre Dando this week“Some of the defendants will be prosecuted for ‘aggravated pimping,’ although I cannot disclose which ones at this time,” he told CNN.“The trial is months away and will be well into 2013, I expect.”Dehar has accused Benzema of paying for sex with her in 2008 when she was 16, and told investigators that Ribery flew her to Munich as a ‘birthday present for himself’ the following year.The Paris state prosecutor has previously called for the charges to be dropped on the grounds that the players did not know that Dehar was underage, however, investigators have since decided to take it to trial. If found guilty, Ribery and Benzema could face a three-year jail term.Agencies
