An investigation has been opened into the death of a French actor who was among those accusing the movie star Gérard Depardieu of sexual assault, the Paris prosecutor’s office said on December 14, per Associated Press. Emmanuelle Debever made her allegations against Depardieu public in 2019 with a Facebook post, saying the actor groped her in 1982 while shooting the film Danton, Associated Press reported. Debever’s partner alerted police of a “worrying†note found after she left their home on November 29. Later that day, Debever jumped from a Paris bridge into the Seine river and received emergency medical care before being transported to a hospital, according to prosecutors. She died December 7 at the age of 60.
Depardieu has been under investigation for rape and sexual assault since 2020 over allegations raised by actor Charlotte Arnould two years prior. Depardieu denied all allegations. His lawyer previously said the actor “absolutely denies any rape, any sexual assault, any crime,†according to reports. According to a new France 2 documentary, Gérard Depardieu: The Fall of the Ogre, that aired the same day Debever died, the total number of accusers stands at 16.