Dominique Strauss-Kahn Accuser Nafissatou Diallo to Meet With Prosecutors

Aug. 21, 2011— -- New York City prosecutors are scheduled to meet Monday with the hotel maid who has accused former International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn of attempted rape.

The meeting will occur one day before a scheduled court appearance fir Strauss-Kahn, at which prosecutors could announce whether they will go forward with criminal charges.

The accuser, Nafissatou Diallo, will attend the meeting Monday, according to her attorneys Kenneth Thompson and Douglas Wigdor, who say they believe Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance intends to drop all or part of the sexual assault case.

"While we remain hopeful that the District Attorney will decide to continue with the prosecution of Mr. Strauss-Kahn given the mountain of physical evidence demonstrating that he sexually assaulted Ms. Diallo on May 14, we are not confident that he will do so," Wigdor said.

Vance's spokeswoman has declined to comment.

Initially prosecutors said they believed Diallo's encounter with the former chief of the International Monetary Fund "strongly suggested something other than a consensual act."

But for the last several weeks they have been reassessing the "strength of the case," which they say has been affected by "substantial credibility issues" related to Diallo's background, personal information and conduct immediately after the encounter inside the Sofitel Hotel.

"The fact this case has been drenched in publicity could have affected its course," said Royal Oakes, an attorney in Los Angeles who is not involved in the case. "It's very possible that the accuser felt she had to fight back against all the accusations against her by filing a lawsuit for damages and yet ironically that step might have convinced prosecutors that her credibility is vulnerable."

Diallo has filed a civil lawsuit seeking damages of an unspecified amount for "severe mental anguish and emotional distress" she said she suffered at the hands of Strauss-Kahn.

The lawsuit opened the door to attacks by Strauss-Kahn's attorneys that Diallo is seeking financial gain.