Former President Alberto Fernández of Argentina was accused of beating his partner, Fabiola Yañez, who served as First Lady during his single term in office between 2019 and 2023.
Ms Yañez on Tuesday filed a suit against the former president, saying she was subjected to physical and psychological abuse during the course of their partnership, particularly in the Quinta de Olivos presidential residence.
According to court filings, Ms Yañez, 43, said Mr Fernández, 65, often struck her across the cheek, pummelled her face, leaving her with a black eye and kicked her in the stomach. She filed the complaint after two pictures of her bruises and black eye got leaked on social media.
Ms Yáñez, in the suit, also claimed that she underwent an illegal abortion procedure against her will in 2016, a time when abortion was still outlawed in Argentina.
She said Mr Fernández monitored and restricted her movement.
Ramiro González, a prosecutor on the matter, charged Mr Fernández with “minor and serious injuries, doubly aggravated” and “coercive threats.” The president denied the allegations, asserting he had evidence to defend himself in court.
The accusations of domestic abuse emerged when prosecutors examined photos on the former secretary of Mr Fernández’s cell phone in search of proof of fraud committed by the former president in a different case and discovered images of the former first lady sporting a black eye and a bruised arm.
Although the couple have one child together, they never married. They were partners for over 10 years before their relationship hit the rocks.
Judge Julián Ercolini slapped a restraining order on Mr Fernández, prohibiting him from getting 500 metres close to Ms Yañez. The judge also banned him from fleeing the country pending the determination of the suit.
Sharp criticisms have so far greeted the accusations as strong political voices continue to rebuke the former president openly.
“The pictures of Mrs Fabiola Yañez with hematomas on her face and arms, together with the chats, not only show the beatings she took but also reveal the most sordid and dark aspects of the human condition,” former President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner wrote in a post on X.
“Misogyny, male chauvinism, and hypocrisy are the pillars of physical and verbal violence against women and have no political affiliation, crisscrossing across the entire society,” she added.
“Monsters belong behind bars,” said María Eugenia Vidal, former BA province governor.
Ramiro Marra, a legislator from the ruling coalition La Libertad Avanza (LLA), called the former president “a piece of shit.”