Brentford striker Yoane Wissa will attend court in France this week for the trial of a woman who allegedly attacked him with acid and attempted to kidnap his child.
The incident, which occurred in the summer of 2021, left Wissa with serious injuries to his face and requiring emergency eye surgery. He was described as fortunate not to lose his sight.
The attack took place just a few weeks before Wissa joined Brentford from Lorient in a deal worth around £8.5 million.
Wissa is the subject of transfer interest from Nottingham Forest, who made a bid of around £20 million for him earlier this week, but this week he will be travelling back to France to attend the case.
Ahead of the trial, Wissa’s lawyer, Karim Morand-Lahouazi, told French outlet RMC Sport that the woman, known as Mrs Laetitia P, had wanted to kidnap Wissa’s newborn daughter.
“On the night of July 1 to 2, 2021, Mrs. Laetitia P. tried to kidnap the daughter of Yoane Wissa, a player at the time for FC Lorient who was in the process of being transferred to Brentford,” said Morand-Lahouazi.
“This person entered the player’s home in the middle of the night and threw a corrosive liquid in my client’s eyes, which could have had much more serious consequences. He felt severe pain when he came into contact with this liquid.
“She wanted to kidnap Yoane Wissa’s child. It was my client’s intervention that allowed the accused to flee fairly quickly. In the end, the child was not kidnapped. It should be remembered that a few hours before the incident, this woman had come to ask the player for an autograph at his home.”
Morand-Lahouazi added that the accused woman had lied to her husband “for months” about being pregnant.
“I think that during all this time, she was developing her plan to kidnap a mixed-race child. There is no debate. There is even premeditation with the purchase of this corrosive product in a supermarket near my client’s home. She tried to kidnap a child from a mixed-race couple. That was her goal.”
Morand-Lahouazi said Wissa is waiting for “clearer explanations” and that he will be present for two days of the trial. He said the Brentford forward and his family feel safe and “sheltered” in England, but that the alleged attack has left “after-effects”.
Wissa has enjoyed an excellent campaign so far, scoring 11 goals in 19 Premier League appearances for Brentford. Their next match is against Crystal Palace on Sunday.
Source: telegraph.co.uk