Duchess of Cambridge, Catherine at Trooping the Colour in 2012.
Duchess of Cambridge, Catherine at Trooping the Colour in 2012. Creative Commons

Two people will face criminal charges for repsonsiblity of the now infamous images of Kate Middleton and Prince William vacationing in South France.

The photographs were taken during the couple vacationed at a private chateau owned by Lord Linley, the Queen's nephew, in Luberon.

Female photographer, Valerie Suau, photographed Kate and Prince William while aboard a yacht, the images displayed the Royal couple sun bathing, swimming, applying sunscreen and of course a topless Kate.

The images of Kate topless went viral internationally after being published on the cover of French magazine, Closer.

France-based AFP news agency reports that a senior executive at the Mondadori Group, who served, as publisher of Closer magazine will also faces criminal charge, his name is Ernesto Mauri.

After the topless images of Kate were first published in Closer, an aggressive investigation began, authorities research how the images were obtained under France's strict privacy laws.

William issued a statement, which compared the invasion of his wife's privacy to the "worst excesses of the Princess Diana era," Prince William even decided to press criminal charges against the advice of some advisers.

The Royal couple filed a criminal complaint to the French Prosecution Department and launched a claim for civil damages at the Tribunal de Grande Instance de Nanterre.

While the investigation into the acquisition of the topless photos of the Duchess of Cabridge would take time, on Septmeber 18, French courts granted an injunction against Closer prohibiting further publication of the pictures.

The French court at the Tribunal de Grande Instance de Nanterre will reach a decision regarding the criminal charges on June 5.

Under French law, criminal charges for privacy violations carry a maximum jail sentence of one year and a fine of up to $58,000 for individuals and $290,000 for companies.

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