. >> reporter: dominique strauss-kahn, 62 years old, unshaven after two nights in a new york jail, stood stone-faced. as the prosecutor announced the grim charges against him. >> -- restraining a hotel employee inside of his room. he sexually assaulted her and attempted to forcibly rape her. when he was unsuccessful, he forced her to perform oral sex on him -- >> reporter: the employee, a 32-year-old immigrant mother working as a maid, has told police strauss-kahn emerged naked from the bathroom, chased her, locked the door, and as the complain against him puts it, engaged in oral sexual conduct and anal sexual conduct by forcible compulsion. the maid immediately reported the incident to hotel authorities and the police. the alleged attack happened saturday, here, in a new york hotel suite that cost $3,000 a night. that kind of lavish lifestyle is just the way dominique strauss-kahn rolled. >> this kind of guy, when you arrive in the room, who will sort of focus and magnetize all of the attention. >> reporter: strauss-kahn's decades of experience that brought him to the pinnacle of power

. >> what do you make of the sight of a possible future president in handcuffs, unshaven in a new yorkourtroom? >> thause what a dreadful image to wake up to. political life stopped in france. this was the biggest political event since april 21, 2002, when the ladier of the extreme right went through to the second round of the presidential elections. on sunday morning, many jaws dropped in shared disbelief. but now things have gone worse. we see these images which are extremely violent to us because it is illegal in france to actually show anyone handcuffed at such an early stage in a case. and also because this man was considered as the next president in france -- >> let's put it in perspective here. the allegation is of rape, which is a very serious violent crime. would it have played out like this in france? >> no. and we should remember that he is insent until proven guilty. that is what the french recent so much, that he is treated as a guilty party while so far we are talking about alcombations. >> hang on. he is being treated like any other suspect. >> that's true. any other for

. >> looking tired and unshaven. dominique strauss-kahn moved to the side of the court waiting to be taken back to jail. in france, there is disbelief at seeing a former minister cuffed. he was protected by silence that shielded many french leaders. it is said he was warned before taking over at the i.m.f. that the culture of washington was different of france. yet in 2008, he had an affair with a subordinate at the i.m.f. and a writer alleges alleges that dominique strauss-kahn attacked her when she went to interview him and plan on filing a criminal complaint. >> this has been going on for years and years and has to go to the u.s. for the police and the justice to investigate him seriously. >> in brussels today, there were crucial talks about the crisis in the eurozone and dominique strauss-kahn was supposed to have been here. he was a principal figure for providing bailout packages. europe's finance ministers played it down but europe is moving towards another key moment when it has to decide on further assistance

. >> reporter: there he was, one of the world's most powerful men, disheveled, unshaven, and facing felonies. dominique strauss kahn, head of the international monetary fund, the imf, and french politician, now charged with violent sex crimes against a maid inside this luxury manhattan hotel. >> restrained a hotel employee inside his room. he sexually assaulted her and attempted to forcibly rape her. >> reporter: prosecutors argued with his wealth and influence, he's an extreme flight risk. the judge agreed, no bail. strauss kahn will sit in jail awaiting trial. as leader of the imf, he controls a trillion dollars. he was even about to run for president of france, but this weekend inside his expensive suite at manhattan's sofitel, police say he went on the attack. sexually assaulting the maid on the bed, dragging her to the bathroom, and sexually assaulting her again. with the international press in a feeding frenzy, strauss kahn's defense team spoke outside of court. >> we'll prove in our judgment that mr. strauss kahn is innocent of these charges. >> reporter: guilty or not, many say this

instead, the 62-year-old was in court, stone-faced and unshaven, as a prosecutor accused of him sexually assaulting a hotel maid. >> restrained a hotel employee inside of his room. he sexually assaulted her and attempted to forcibly rape her. >> repor >> reporter: strauss-khan is an economist. a leader of the french socialist party and the head of the international monetary fund, a global bank created by the united nations, with powerful friends. >> i'm very sad. and upset. he's a good friend of mine. >> reporter: this isn't the first time strauss-khan, now married to his third wife, has been accused of sexual misconduct. four years ago, on a tv talk show, a french writer said strauss-khan attacked her in 2002. but she never filed charges. this time, the judge denied bail for now. his lawyer says it's all a mistake. >> mr. strauss-khan is innocent of these charges. we think this case is very defensible. and his principal intention is reestablish his good name. >> reporter: a name now echoing in the halls of rikers island. strauss-khan's current accommodations could fit several times in t

was followed by rage, especially after the arraignment where he appeared unshaven, he had no tie and he had also been handcuffed which is, under french law, not acceptable to show a defendant handcuffed. so now there's been another sort of movement in people's thinking and there is starting to be sympathy for the woman, the victim. people are now raising the question of whether or not there should be changes in sexual harassment traditions or laws here in france. >> ifill: i saw a poll which maybe is dated by now showing that 57% of french people thought that he was a victim of a conspiracy. is that shifting? >> well, exactly. as you use the word "dated." it was done on monday and things have changed since then as the sort of reality has sunk in and some more details are unfolding. also, polls in france-- and you know this day from your days covering politics-- polls in france are not like they are in the u.s. >> ifill: elaine, you've been in paris for some time and you probably have some sense of the cultural difference between the way these sort of things are perceived there and th

. >> ifill: the director of the international monetary fund looking haggard and unshaven appeared instead before a new york state judge in lower manhattan, charged with sexual assault. >> one count of attempted rape in the first degree. one count of sexual abuse in the first degree. >> ifill: it all stems from an alleged encounter on saturday afternoon in a $3,000 a night suite at the hotel in times square. a 32-year-old chamber maid alleged that strauss kahn came out of the bathroom naked and forced himself on her repeatedly. he was arrested later that day, taken off an air france flight minutes before it departed for paris. today defense attorney benjamin brachman argued for his client's release on $1 million bail. >> i also would add for the benefit of the defendant that he denies these charges, that he is presumed innocent under the law something which i did not hear at all coming from the people's position. he is presumed innocent. indeed this is a very defense i believe case. >> ifill: before a packed courtroom, judge melissa jackson agreed with prosecutors that strauss kahn, a fren

unshaven, tired and dishevelled in court, listening to the accusations against him. >> rape in the first degree, sexual abuse in the first degree. >> reporter: a fall from grace in just days. saturday he was living the life in a ritzy manhattan hotel. by sunday, hauled off in handcuffs and this morning, dominique strauss-kahn, one of the world's most powerful men, head of the international monetary fund and a favorite in the french presidential election is now just another inmate at new york's feared reikers island. >> he has no human contact other than a person dropping food and an hour outside by himself in a yard. >> reporter: police say he sexually assaulted a hotel maid twice in his suite at the sofitel in times square. according to the complaint he shut the door, attempted to pull down her pantyhose and engaged in oral sexual conduct by forcible compulsion but his defense lawyer hinted at another theory -- that it was consensual. >> we'll prove in our judgment that mr. strauss-kahn is innocent of the charges. >> reporter: in the courtroom monday the judge called strauss-kahn an ext