Judges have described Dominique Strauss-Kahn as "king of the party" and the "linchpin" of soirees with prostitutes that resembled "carnage on a pile of mattresses", in a damning indictment of the disgraced former International Monetary Fund chief.
The 64-year-old, who is due to go on trial on "aggravated pimping" charges, insists he had no idea the young women who took part in a string of orgies in France and Washington were being paid to have sex with him.
However, in a document justifying why they chose to send him to trial - leaked to Le Figaro newspaper - the two investigating magistrates said he was clearly the "linchpin" of a prostitution ring operating from the Carlton hotel in Lille, northern France.
The indictment says "all those present could not have been unaware" that prostitutes had taken part in these soirees as "the age and appearance of these female participants left little doubt as to their activities".
The judges said these get-togethers, mainly in hotels, amounted to "sexual consumption", or even "carnage on a pile of mattresses on the floor". Their nature made it clear "this was in no way a question of libertine acts" but about "factory-line sex" and "orders for services", they said.
