U.S. news media are reporting that DNA taken from the former International Monetary Fund chief matches material taken from the work clothes of a hotel maid he is accused of sexually assaulting.
New York police denied Tuesday that any information about the testing of DNA samples obtained from Dominique Strauss-Kahn has been released, and prosecutors say the results will not be released until he goes on trial. But several news organizations said their law enforcement sources told them that his DNA matches semen found on the woman's shirt.
The sources said the test results were consistent with accounts the woman provided police after reporting she was assaulted on May 14 in Strauss-Kahn's $3,000-a-night suite at a New York hotel. But they are also consistent with what Strauss-Kahn's lawyers have suggested would be his defense - that a sexual encounter occurred, but that it was consensual.
Defense lawyer Benjamin Brafman declined to comment on the test results and says Strauss-Kahn will be exonerated.
The former IMF chief is under house arrest at a luxury New York apartment, his every move watched by armed guards and cameras. He was released last week on $1 million cash bail and a $5 million bond. His next court appearance is set for June 6, when a judge is likely to officially inform him of the charges he faces.
Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.
