France prop Haouas in pre-trial detention for alleged domestic violence

French rugby player Mohamed Haouas has been placed in detention pending trial for alleged domestic violence in the southern town of Montpellier, his lawyer said on Sunday.

Haouas had been in police custody since Friday and will be tried on Tuesday.

"The judge insisted that... Friday's events were unequivocal. It's sad for him and for his wife, who will be coming to court on Tuesday to give evidence and hope that things go well for their two children in particular," Marc Gallix was quoted as saying by sports daily L'Equipe.

"A whole family will be destroyed if he is convicted."

In a separate case, Haouas, who plays as a prop for the Montpellier team and for France, was tried this month for acts of aggravated violence in 2014.

The judgement is expected on June 30.

Haouas, who was sent off against Scotland in the Six Nations, was in 2022 given an 18-month suspended prison sentence for robbery, also dating from 2014.