Dominique Alderweireld, aka 'Dodo la Saumure,' a central figure in the so-called Lille Carlton Scandal, has died at the age of 77 at the Picardy Wallonia Hospital Centre in Tournai, French newspaper La Voix du Nord reported on Tuesday.
Alderweireld had become widely known during the scandal, in which former French minister Dominique Strauss-Kahn was also named.
The Lille Carlton Scandal, which broke in 2011, centred around the activities of René Kojfer, who was then in charge of public relations for the Carlton and Les Tours hotels, and who organised ‘sex parties’ during which several prominent French and other figures used the services of prostitutes, many of them supplied by Alderweireld.
Alderweireld was prosecuted for aggravated procuring in the Lille Carlton case, but was acquitted by the French courts in 2015.
Born on 5 February 1949 in Annœullin, northern France, Alderweireld said he preferred to describe himself as a pimp rather than a procurer. He ran several brothels in Tournai and the surrounding area.
In January this year, the criminal court in Tournai sentenced him to six years in prison and fined him nearly €500,000. The case involved 11 establishments across Wallonia Picardy.
He faced charges including human trafficking, criminal organisation, money laundering and the use of forged documents, and had decided to appeal against the ruling.
In recent months, Alderweireld’s health had deteriorated. He had also repeatedly spoken of difficult living conditions and housing problems.
