The police investigating claims by Tristane Banon found insufficient evidence to back up her allegation that Strauss- Kahn tried to rape her in 2003 when she visited him for an interview, the prosecutors said in an e-mailed statement. Prosecutors said that while there may have been grounds for a sexual-assault probe, the statute of limitations had expired.

Given the “lack of sufficient elements of proof” uncovered by the police, “an investigation into attempted rape cannot be undertaken,” the public prosecutors’ office said.

Banon filed a complaint in July as another attempted-rape case against the 62-year-old was unraveling in New York. Strauss-Kahn resigned his post as head of the International Monetary Fund in May to fight claims by a Manhattan hotel maid. That case was dropped in August after prosecutors said the maid’s story was unreliable.

Calls to lawyers for Banon and Strauss-Kahn for comment weren’t immediately returned.

Strauss-Kahn returned to Paris last month.

Banon has said she will pursue a civil case against Strauss-Kahn should the criminal complaint fail.