French prosecutors on Monday, May 21 opened a preliminary investigation into accusations that disgraced ex-IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn took part in a gang rape in the United States.

According to AFP, prosecutors in Lille, where Strauss-Kahn and three others have been charged in a pimping case, said the probe centered on an incident "that could be described as gang rape" that took place in Washington, DC.