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Housekeeper Who Accused Strauss-Kahn Of Sex Assault Recounts Alleged Attack

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) -- The hotel housekeeper who says she was sexually assaulted at the Sofitel Hotel is speaking out, trying to change how she's portrayed in the media.

Nafissatou Diallo accused Dominique Strauss-Kahn back in May. The scandal forced him to resign post as head of the International Monetary Fund, but earlier this month, prosecutors questioned the accuser's credibility, saying she told them a series of lies.

In a Newsweek and broadcast TV network interview, Diallo spoke about what she said happened inside the hotel room,

Diallo claims she walked into room 2806 to clean it, not knowing it was still occupied. She said Strauss-Kahn suddenly appeared naked and starts wrestling her to the bed.

"I said, 'Sir, stop this. I don't want to lose my job'," she recounted to Newsweek. "He pulls me hard to the bed."

Diallo said he then moved her to the bathroom were he sexually assaulted her.

"I run to the hallway. I was so nervous. I was so scared. I didn't want to lose my job," she added.

Diallo insists she's telling the truth about Strauss-Kahn.

"Because of him they call me a prostitute," she added. "I want him to go to jail. I want him to know there are some places you cannot use your power, you cannot use your money."

Attorneys for Strauss-Kahn said Diallo is trying to persuade prosecutors and released a statement saying "Her lawyers know that her claim for money suffers a fatal blow when the criminal charges are dismissed, as they must be."

"We believed from the beginning that this case was not what it appeared to be," said defense attorney Benjamin Braffman.

Diallo said she would love to return to hotel work, but not in housekeeping.

The District Attorney's Office released a statement saying, in part, "we will not discuss the facts or evidence in what remains an ongoing investigation."

Lawyers for Diallo and French novelist Tristane Banon, who also accused Strauss-Kahn of sexual assault met with prosecutors in New York last week in a roughly two-and-a-half hour session at the Manhattan District Attorney's Office.

Diallo's lawyer, Kenneth Thompson, said only that he was seeking justice for his client. The DA's office declined to comment, as did Banon's lawyer, David Koubbi.

Prosecutors have publicly said the maid has a history of lying that has seriously weakened the case. Thompson has called on Vance to recuse his office from the case and arrange for a special prosecutor.

Do you believe Diallo? Sound off in our comments section below…

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