A police note written before the 2007 French presidential elections reportedly claims that Mr Strauss-Kahn, 62, was "surprised in an unfortunate position in a car to the West of Paris in a hot spot for paid encounters during a routine (police) control". The "hot spot" is thought to be the Bois de Boulogne wood, a notorious pickup spot.
Citing three separate trusted sources, France's Le Monde newspaper claimed the note was passed on to Mr Sarkozy's entourage shortly before the presidential elections he eventually won.
Mr Sarkozy, it said, chose not to leak the note back in 2007 as Mr Strauss-Kahn was not seen as a serious threat to his presidential hopes, having been recently knocked out of Socialist primaries. The original was shredded.
But according to the report he chose to resurrect the information in recent weeks after polls suggested Mr Strauss-Kahn would trounce the incumbent should he run next year. The allegations were leaked to French media – including Le Monde – in a bid to smear Mr Strauss-Kahn.
However, the French press chose not publish the note, considering it a breach of Mr Strauss-Kahn's private life. » | Henry Samuel, Paris | Tuesday, May 24, 2011
