Gonzalo Fuentes / Reuters
The aggravated pimping trial for former IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn took a surprise turn Monday when five of six plaintiffs abandoned accusations against the disgraced politician. The five women dropped damages claims in the final week of the trial over a lack of proof that Strauss-Kahn knew they were prostitutes. Strauss-Kahn, who has faced multiple allegations of sexual assault throughout his career, stands accused of aggravated pimping in connection to international sex parties in France, Washington, D.C., and Brussels and argues he was unaware the women were prostitutes. He and 13 others are also accused of involvement in a prostitution ring. The former prostitutes continue to accuse the other defendants, but are seeking one euro as gesture of symbolic damages against them, according to court officials.