Pimping charges kept against Dominique Strauss-Kahn

PARIS French judges decided Wednesday not to drop pimping charges against former International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn, his lawyers said. They quickly vowed to appeal.

The case is the last remaining legal headache involving alleged sex-related crimes for Strauss-Kahn. The 63-year-old one-time Socialist presidential hopeful resigned from his IMF job in May last year and saw his international reputation collapse after a hotel maid accused of him of trying to rape her. A settlement was reached in that U.S. case last week.

In a statement after a court in the northern city of Douai retained the preliminary charges, Strauss-Kahn lawyer Henri Leclerc lashed out at investigating judges in the case. He claimed the charges against Strauss-Kahn were not specified, that some evidence was hidden from the defense team, facts were twisted and definitions of the legal term "pimping" were created with no basis in law.

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Outside the Douai courthouse, Frederique Baulieu, another defense lawyer, told reporters, "We are certain that Dominique Strauss-Kahn will be cleansed of all charges against him."

Strauss-Kahn was hit in March with preliminary charges of "aggravated procurement in an organized gang" in an investigation into a hotel prostitution ring in nearby Lille that was said to involve prominent city figures and police.

The case against Strauss-Kahn hinges on whether he knew he was partying with prostitutes, and whose money was used to pay them. Strauss-Kahn's lawyers have said he attended "libertine" gatherings, but didn't know some women present were paid.