French-Lebanese trumpeter Ibrahim Maalouf. (AFP)
Star trumpeter Ibrahim Maalouf is being investigated by French police for kissing a 14-year-old girl while she was his intern, a justice official said Friday.
The incident dates from 2013 when the Franco-Lebanese musician, who has played with Sting and Elvis Costello, is alleged to have kissed the girl at the end of her internship.
Prosecutor Laure Beccuau said the inquiry centers on “sexual interference, which is different from sexual assault because it involves the consent of the minor”.
Maalouf, now 36, is alleged to have sent the secondary school student a text message asking her to send him a picture of herself naked, French daily the Parisien reported.
Beccuau said she could not confirm this, but said Maalouf had said it was a one-off incident that he immediately regretted” when he was questioned last year after her parents went to police.
She said the victim was in a “complicated psychological state”, given her “admiration for her idol”.
Maalouf's soundtrack for the film “In the Forests of Siberia” won a “French Oscar”, a Cesar, last week.
If charged and convicted, the jazz musician could face up to five years in jail and a fine of up to 75,000 euros ($79,000).
