FILE - In this Oct. 30, 3017 file photo director Roman Polanski poses during a photo call prior to the screening of "Based on a true story" in Paris, France. Swiss prosecutors say they won’t pursue an investigation of Oscar-winning director Roman Polanski over allegations by a German woman that he raped her when she was a teenager 45 years ago. Prosecutors in the Swiss capital, Bern, said Wednesday Nov. 8, 2017 that the alleged crime of sexual actions with children has long since fallen under the statute of limitations, which was 15 years at the time. (AP Photo/Francois Mori,file)
Republished November 08, 2017 - 11:43 AM
Original Publication Date November 08, 2017 - 7:11 AM
GENEVA - Swiss prosecutors say they won't pursue an investigation of Oscar-winning director Roman Polanski over allegations by a German woman that he raped her when she was a teenager 45 years ago.
Prosecutors in the Swiss capital, Bern, said Wednesday that the statute of limitations for the alleged crime of sexual actions with children had long since expired.
The 61-year-old plaintiff filed a criminal complaint in September alleging Polanski raped her at his chalet in Gstaad, in Bern canton (state) in 1972. The statute of limitations was 15 years at the time.
Polanski's lawyer, Herve Temime, said in an email to The Associated Press that he "takes note" of the Swiss prosecutors' decision.
Temime added that the allegations mentioned in the complaint were "contested by Mr. Polanski and unfounded."
The 84-year-old Polanski has been a fugitive from U.S. justice since he fled to France in 1978 after pleading guilty to having unlawful sex with a minor in California.
News from © The Associated Press, 2017