Former IMF boss gets bail

NEW YORK (AP)

Over the objections of prosecutors, a judge agreed yesterday to free former International Monetary Fund (IMF) chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn from jail on $1-million bail on the condition he be confined to a New York apartment under armed guard while he awaits trial on charges of attempted rape.

The 62-year-old French banker and diplomat briefly wore an expression of relief after Supreme Court Justice Michael J. Obus announced his decision in a packed courtroom. Later, Strauss-Kahn blew a kiss towards his wife.

The ruling didn't immediately free Strauss-Kahn from the city's bleak Rikers Island jail. Authorities need time to review the security arrangements involved in his house arrest, which lawyers said would be at an apartment rented by his wife.

The lawyer who represented Strauss-Kahn at the hearing, William Taylor, called the ruling "a great relief for the family".

"He's going back to Rikers tonight and we expect him to be released tomorrow," he said.

Strauss-Kahn will not only have to post the full $1 million but will also have to take out a $5-million insurance bond. A trial date was not immediately set.

The banker is accused of attacking a 32-year-old housekeeper last Saturday at his $3,000-a-night hotel suite.