Former two-time president of Costa Rica and Nobel Peace Award winner, Oscar Arias Sánchez, was formally accused by a physician and antinuclear activist of last names Arce von Herold, of sexual assault.

The criminal complaint was filed on Monday, February 4, and it was national daily Semanario Universidad that released the information. The attack reported is said to have taken place on December 1, 2014.

Arce provided a copy of the 10-page complaint to The New York Times. “She (Arce) said she was at Mr. Arias’ home in late 2014 to discuss an upcoming event in Vienna when he came up behind her, touched her breasts and shoved his hands up her skirt, penetrating her with his fingers”, states the information released by this newspaper.

“I told him no, that he was married. That was my no. It was the only thing I thought of saying. I had met the wife (…) It was the only thing that occurred to me because I am an idiot, I didn’t know what he was going to do”, declared Arce to Semanario Universidad.
Arce, who was 30 years of age at the time, told several close friends what had happened.

Through his lawyer, Rodolfo Brenes, former president Arias stated: “I deny categorically the accusations made against me,” he said. “I have never acted in a way that disrespected the will of any woman.”

Arce stated she did not filed the complaint earlier because she fell into a depression and “the notion of making such a serious allegation against someone so powerful seemed unimaginable”; however, the #metoo movement in the United States where women accused powerful men of sexual harassment and sexual assault inspired her and motivated her to come forward.