HOT Surveillance Video after DSK Sofitel Hotel Incident Released; Shows Bizarre Security Guard Dance

Hotel CCTV images of former IMF Chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn and the New York chambermaid who accused him of attempted rape were broadcast by French news channel BFMTV on Thursday,reports NyPo.

DSK is shown calmly leaving the Sofitel hotel May 14. Nafissatou Diallo is filmed speaking to hotel security staff, who are in turn seen performing a bizarre celebratory dance.

The video shows Strauss-Kahn exits the elevator, pays his bill at the front desk and then climbs into a taxi outside in a sequence lasting a matter of minutes. He does not appear to be hurrying or in a distressed state.

The recording cuts to show Diallo at first sitting alone and quietly in a corridor opposite a security office. She then appears to play out the scene alleged to have taken place in room 2806 earlier for other members of staff.

The clip then cuts to the two security personnel alone in a side room appearing to be celebrating with some sort of victory dance, which lasted 13 seconds. It is not clear why, but reports of the episode last month in the New York Review of Books suggested it added weight to the theory that Strauss-Kahn was set up by his political enemies.

Strauss-Kahn to Appear in Court on Friday

What's up with this? Dominique Strauss-Kahn is to make an unexpected court appearance in New York on Friday, according to prosecutors, who declined to provide further details, reports FT.

A court spokeswoman said the appearance by  DSK, who is awaiting trial on sexual assault charges, had been requested by both prosecutors and defence lawyers.

DSK's next scheduled court appearance had been July 18.

UPDATE: NyPo is reporting that DSK is seeking as yet-unspecified loosening of the conditions of his house arrest.

Does DSK Accuser Have AIDS?

NyPo is reporting that the woman accusing IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn of rape is living in a Bronx apartment rented exclusively for adults with HIV or AIDS.

A Harlem United worker said at least one adult in the household has to be HIV-positive or have AIDS to qualify for one of their units.  The woman is the only adult in the apartment, she lives there with her daughter. She would not be eligible for the apartment if it was her daughter who had HIV/AIDS, but not her.

IMF Chief Strauss-Kahn Under Suicide Watch

A law enforcement official and a union official say International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn, who has been charged with sexually attacking a maid in the NYC Sofitel Hotel, is under a suicide watch in jail.

Norman Seabrook heads New York City's corrections officer union. He told The Associated Press on Tuesday that Strauss-Kahn was under the watch at Rikers Island.

A law enforcement official confirmed that Strauss-Kahn was placed under watch after undergoing a mental health evaluation. The official spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of prisoners' medical information.

Strauss-Kahn Got Great Deal Through Travelocity

The "$3,000 per night suite" that IMF Chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn was staying at in the Sofitel Hotel, with a separate dining area, living room and bedroom, actually cost him only $525. According to NyTi, DSK's office provided a Travelocity receipt showing what he paid.

Also of note, in addition to a passport, DSK carries a laissez-passer, a United Nations credential issued to international personnel that allows for easier travel. Among other things, it probably allowed him to pass through airport security without a full-body scan, or pat down. I suspect things are different at Riker's.

A Not Very Happy Looking Strauss-Kahn

Below is a pic of IMF Chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn in court this morning waiting for his case to be called. When the case was called, Judge Melissa Jackson denied him bail, which probably made DSK even more unhappy.

Strauss-Kahn's next court appearance is scheduled for May 20:

Judge Denies Bail for Strauss-Kahn

IMF Chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn has been ordered held without bail.

Developing...

Update: Judge denying bail is Judge Melissa Jackson. She is Acting Supreme Court Justice currently serving as the Supervising Judge of New York County Criminal Court, was first appointed to the Criminal Court in June 2003. She graduated from the University of Pennsylvania and received her law degree from Fordham University School of Law. She formerly served with the Kings County District Attorney's Office for nearly 22 years where she rose to become Deputy District Attorney of the Major Frauds/Rackets Bureau. Reappointed November 2007.

Update 2: “He has almost no incentive to stay in this country,” Assistant District Attorney Artie McConnell told Judge Jackson. McConnell said authorities don’t know what travel documents Strauss-Kahn has access to.

Strauss-Kahn's Lawyers Claim He Wasn't at Hotel at the Time of the Sexual Attack

France's RMC Radio said Monday, according to NyPo, that Strauss-Kahn's legal team has evidence the IMF chief was at a restaurant with his daughter at the time of the alleged assault. RMC said Strauss-Kahn's lawyers maintain he left the hotel at midday Saturday, after first paying his bill and handing over his key. He had lunch and took a taxi to the airport, according to the report.

Since cameras are all over NYC, this should be easy enough to prove or refute.

IMF Chief: It's a Government Manipulated Recovery

International Monetary Fund head Dominique Strauss-Kahn said on Sunday the world economy was not "out of the woods" despite a faster recovery in developing and emerging countries than earlier forecast, reports Reuters.

"You see growth resuming almost everywhere but that almost everywhere these growth figures are related to public support and private demand remaining rather weak and not strong enough.


Until private demand is sustainable to provide growth it will be difficult to say the crisis is over," he added.

Strauss-Kahn said that although a double dip could not be ruled out, the IMF did not forecast one.