Justice counted six “possible victims,” some of whom were former interns in his office. David Metaxas, a Lyon lawyer specializing in banditry cases, nicknamed the “thug lawyer”, was charged with serial rape and sexual abuse, committed in a position of authority, Chambéry’s public prosecutor, Xavier Sicot, said this Friday, in a press release sent to AFP.
As part of this investigation, prosecutors counted six “possible victims,” according to Xavier Sicot. According to our colleagues from the regional daily Le Progrès, some of them are former interns at his office.
His parental rights were extended several times
On Monday, David Metaxas, a criminal lawyer at a Lyon bar, was detained by police as part of the investigation and transferred to Chambery.
After several extensions of this action, he was charged with “rape committed by a person in authority over the victim and in competition”, involving several victims, but also attempted rape, sexual assault and sexual harassment, according to the judge.
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He was placed under judicial supervision, “in accordance with the prosecutor’s request” and the judicial investigation continues, Xavier Sicot further said. When contacted by AFP, his lawyer Alain Jakubowicz would not speak.
“Thug Lawyer”
Aged 49, Me Metaxas is a well-known figure in Lyon’s bars for his sometimes provocative style and his taste in media. As the head of a firm called “The Firm” in reference to the famous thriller by John Grisham and the eponymous film by Sydney Pollack, he earned the nickname “thug lawyer” due to his defense of several members of organized crime.
He is primarily an advisor to alleged Calabrian mafia member Edgardo Greco, 65, who was arrested in Saint-Étienne in February 2023 after 17 years on the run and for whom he is raising calls for his release.
This is not the first time Me Metaxas has had to deal with the law. Indicted in 2012 for concealing a breach of professional secrecy in the corruption case of Lyon’s former number two judicial police officer, Michel Neyret, Me Metaxas was acquitted during a trial in 2016
