A Carlton affair: Ex-IMF chief to go on trial for 'pimping' role in sex parties

Roquet, Jean-Christophe Lagarde and Fabrice Pazskowski are accused of setting up sex parties for the IMF chief

PARIS: This case involves a ring of businessmen and police -- connected through freemasonry -- setting up sex parties in luxury hotel rooms.

In October 2011, Dominique Alderweireld, a convicted pimp known as "Dodo la Saumure", a reference to the curing liquid used for mackerel, which is French slang for pimp, is charged with procuring prostitutes and money laundering.

As part of the probe into Alderweireld, who runs brothels in Belgium, police uncover an alleged cross-border prostitution ring involving the managers of the luxury Carlton hotel in Lille, local business leaders and police officials.

Rene Kojfer, former Carlton public relations officer, is one of the key accused.

He is charged with "aggravated pimping" for allegedly advertising "Dodo's" brothels in France, putting clients in touch with prostitutes and setting up sex parties in the hotel as part of the vice ring.

He admits to providing the contact details of prostitutes to businessman David Roquet.

Roquet, former police commissioner Jean-Christophe Lagarde and businessman Fabrice Pazskowski are accused of directly setting up sex parties for the IMF chief.

Along with Dodo's girlfriend Beatrice Legrain -- who ran a massage and sex parlour in Belgium -- they are among 14 accused standing trial for aggravated pimping in an organised group.

For Strauss-Kahn, the case will come down to whether the court thinks he was aware the women were prostitutes, acted as a pimp by providing an apartment for the sex parties, and initiated the orgies.

His defence is that he merely partook in group sex organised by his entourage, and did not know the women were paid.

The pimping charge against Strauss-Kahn is punishable by up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to 1.5 million euros ($1.7 million).