After making headlines in celebrity magazines with his surprise wedding to 35-year-old Paola, 72-year-old Jean-Luc Lahaye has broken his silence on the accusations that have been weighing on him for several years. In an interview with Le Parisien, the interpreter of Singer dad returns directly to his indictment for rape and sexual assault of minors, alleged facts dating back to 2013 and 2014.
A muscular arrest
Jean-Luc Lahaye notably mentions the spectacular circumstances of his arrest, which took place on November 3, 2021: "A BRI assault column, made up of about ten armed and hooded soldiers, came and dragged Paola and me out of bed. The street was blocked, our door was broken down, and we were being targeted with lasers... It was violent! I am neither a terrorist nor Fourniret."
The arrest follows complaints filed by two young women, both 15 years old at the time of the incident. The singer, who had already been convicted in 2007 for corruption of a minor, was held in pretrial detention for several months before being released under judicial supervision. He has since been charged with rape of a minor, sexual assault, and corruption of a minor, charges he strongly denies.
Accusations that he considers unfounded
Jean-Luc Lahaye says he is the victim of a media lynching and a judicial frenzy: "In prison, I realized I'd done a lot of off-piste after a tough, lonely childhood, but not the kind of off-piste I'm accused of."
While he acknowledges having had a tumultuous love life, he categorically denies the allegations. He also criticizes certain child protection associations that have joined the case as civil parties: “There is real violence against women that must be fought, but the associations that are attacking me are trying to get publicity at my expense even though they don’t know my case. In any case, the damage is done! When people read on social media that I’m a “child rapist”…”
A tense return to the stage
Despite the legal and media storm, the singer says he does not want to give up the stage: "No feminist collective will stop me. The stage is my whole life, it's my oxygen. And I have never given in to blackmail and the pack. In prison, I only got down on one knee. Just for my childhood and my life of wandering, I don't want to give in. I move forward, no matter what."
His return to the stage, which began in early 2024 with a series of concerts in Paris and the provinces, has not been easy. Several shows have been disrupted by feminist protests, particularly in Lille and Lyon. Despite this, Jean-Luc Lahaye asserts that "the public is there" and "the love of music" the door.
A wedding in the spotlight
In the same interview, Jean-Luc Lahaye also discusses his relationship with Paola, whom he recently married in the strictest privacy, before images leaked to the celebrity press. He describes their union as a "refuge" and "act of resistance", in a context where his name continues to arouse controversy.
