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The hotel maid who alleges she was sexually assaulted by Dominique Strauss-Kahn was found by a cleaning supervisor for the floor shortly before 12:30 p.m, appearing traumatized, and having difficulty speaking, according to two sources familiar with the investigation. These sources related to The Daily Beast details of what happened in New York City's Sofitel in the hour between the alleged attack and the notification of the police.

The maid, described as a West African immigrant in her 30s, had normally been assigned to clean a different floor in the hotel but recently volunteered to take the floor of Strauss-Kahn's suite after a colleague had gone on leave.

She told authorities she had hid in a hallway until Strauss-Kahn left, when she was found by the floor supervisor on a routine check. The supervisor, who reported the maid had nausea and was trembling, tried to calm her, and called a more senior supervisor. The maid also expressed concern that she'd lose her job because she had walked in on a hotel guest, the sources said. She repeated her concerns about being fired and inquired whether she should even press charges.

The supervisor took her back to Strauss-Kahn's suite, where the maid became visibly upset, and repeatedly spit on the walls and floors of the suite in front of her hotel colleagues as she described details of the alleged attack:

She told supervisors she was startled when Strauss-Kahn emerged naked from a bathroom. She said she apologized to him and turned away from him, but that the IMF chief grabbed her from behind and ... touched her breasts, remarking she was beautiful, the sources said. The woman alleged Strauss-Kahn slammed the door to the suite and engaged the indoor latch to lock it, trapping her inside. She alleged that he dragged her deeper inside the suite, and when she slipped trying to get away, he forced her head down to perform oral sex acts, the sources said.

A hotel security officer also interrogated the maid, likewise reporting that she appeared traumatized, at one point going to a bathroom to try to vomit and several times spitting on the floor and walls of the suite, according to the sources.

The hotel's security chief was informed, who immediately called the New York Police Department and an ambulance once he had ascertained there was enough evidence of a crime and that the maid's story had been consistent during all four contacts she had with hotel employees, the sources said. The interviews and repeated efforts to calm the woman took about an hour and police were summoned around 1:30 p.m., according to the sources.

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