Paul Haggis arrested: Oscar-winning 'Crash' director accused of sexually assaulting woman in Italy
Oscar award-winning director Paul Haggis was arrested in Italy on June 19, Sunday, after a 'foreign woman' accused him of sexual assault. The 69-year-old director was taken away from the southern Italian city of Ostuni after the woman alleged that he held her in his hotel room and forced her to have sex with her. According to her, the assault allegedly went over for two days. As explained by a local prosecutor, Haggis was in Italy for the international music and film festival Allora Fest and that he had a 'non-consensual' relationship with the unidentified woman. Moreover, he was in the queue to headline the event with Oliver Stone, Matt Dillon, Edward Norton, and Marisa Tomei.
The incident was brought to light by the police in the regional capital of Brindisi to The Daily Beast. They also said that the alleged victim could also be working at the festival as a sex worker and that the 69-year-old screenwriter, after allegedly assaulting her, took her to the airport and tried to fly her out of Italy. Despite her distraught physical and mental state, he allegedly abandoned her at the site. The woman was helped at the site by the airport workers who assisted her in informing the police, from where she went to the hospital and underwent standard rape victim protocol. Authorities explained that they weren't authorized to give out information about the case, the victim, or the whereabouts of the two-time Oscar-winning screenwriter and director.
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The victim was forced to seek medical help after the alleged sexual assault as explained by Prosecutors Antonio Negro and Livia Orlando who are conducting the investigation. Soon after the arrest, Haggis' lawyer, Priya Chaudhary, told Fox News Digital, "Under Italian Law, I cannot discuss the evidence. That said, I am confident that all allegations will be dismissed against Mr. Haggis. He is totally innocent and willing to fully cooperate with the authorities so the truth comes out quickly." But this isn't the first time for Haggis when it comes to sexual assault allegations.
Paul Haggis's history of sexual allegations
Talking about success, Haggis is the first person to have written consecutive Best Picture Oscar Winner - 2004's 'Million Dollar Baby', and 2005's 'Crash.' Back in 2017, the talent was accused of violently rapping Haleigh Breest, a publicist, in a New York City apartment. The lawsuit filed in December 2017 revealed that the crime was reported after 4 years of it happening. The filing stated, “The truth she knows and has lived is that behind the façade of these comments lies another predator, a man willing to force himself on a young woman less than half his age and take pleasure in the fear and pain he caused her. Ms. Breest will not look the other way any longer.”
The media was quick to pick up the news and following this, three more women came forward and accused Haggis of sexual allegations.
After Haggis' arrest on June 19, The Allora fest issued a statement written in Italian which said they, "will immediately eliminate any participation of the director from the event. At the same time, we express full solidarity with the woman involved in the matter. The themes chosen for the Festival are of equality, gender equality, and solidarity. As professionals and women, we are dismayed and hope that the Festival will be an instrument of information and awareness on such a topical and dramatically increasing theme."