French mag editor formally charged for publishing Kate Middleton's topless pics

Laurence Pieau, the editor of the French magazine Closer, which published topless photos of the Duchess of Cambridge, has been placed under formal criminal investigation for allegedly breaking France's strict privacy laws.

According to Yahoo! France, Pieau was taken under custody earlier in July and will now face a trial with publishing director Ernesto Mauri, and at least two photographers, Us magazine reported.

Mauri was formally charged in April alongside photog Valerie Suau.

The pictures were taken while Kate Middleton was sunbathing topless on a holiday with husband Prince William at Chateau d'Autet in Provence, France in September 2012.

During a September court hearing of the case, the new mum's lawyer, Aurelien Hamelle, argued that the photo were a "grotesque breach of privacy."

After publishing the photos, Pieau said that she had no regrets.

She had asserted at the time that the photos were not in the least shocking and they just show a young woman sunbathing topless, like the millions of women you see on beaches.