Judge Melissa Jackson said she believed Mr. Strauss-Kahn was a serious flight risk.
“When I hear your client was at JFK airport about to board a flight, that raises some concerns.”
Ms. Jackson denied his bail, sending him to Rikers Island.
On Saturday, Mr. Strauss-Kahn was arrested and questioned on accusations he raped an African immigrant hotel maid.
The maid told police officers she entered his room as Mr. Strauss-Kahn emerged naked from the shower, he then chased her and sexually assaulted her twice.
The women was able to break free to alert the authorities.
In a panic, Mr. Strauss-Kahn gathered his belongings and headed to John F. Kennedy airport. He was pulled off a flight only minutes before take off.
He faces seven charges with a maximum penalty of 25 years in prison.
In 2008, he publicly admitted to “an error of judgment” for having an affair with an I.M.F. subordinate.
Mr. Strauss-Kahn is married to New York-born Anne Sinclair, a popular French TV journalist.
