Several politicians screamed at the scandal Thursday after the statements of the former head of the National Financial Prosecutor's Office (PNF) who said he had suffered "pressure" from his hierarchy in the conduct of the investigation into the Fillon case.
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"Very close" control of the public prosecutor's office, according to the former PNF chief
Heard on June 10 by the parliamentary commission of inquiry on the independence of the justice, Eliane Houlette reaffirmed having decided, in January 2017, in complete independence to open an investigation targeting the Fillon spouses after suspicions of fictitious jobs revealed by the Duck Chained . This investigation, launched in the middle of the presidential campaign, had poisoned the candidacy of François Fillon at the Elysée Palace and led in the spring of 2020 to his criminal trial alongside his wife Penelope. The judgment is expected on June 29.
At the time of his hearing, Eliane Houlette was however moved by the "very close control" that the public prosecutor's office, his direct supervisory authority, would have exercised in the conduct of the investigations. "The most difficult (...) was to deal with the pressure of journalists at the same time - but that can be released - (...) and above all the pressure of the public prosecutor's office," said the ex- Prosecutor, who retired in June 2019.
Eliane Houlette spoke in particular of "requests for rapid transmission" of the investigative acts or the hearings and revealed that she had been summoned by the public prosecutor's office, which argued that the investigation should be entrusted to an investigating judge. "We can only ask ourselves questions, it is a very tight control and it is a very heavy pressure", she said.
LR denounces "extremely serious" charges
Directly questioned, the Attorney General of Paris Catherine Champrenault said, in a message sent to AFP, "regret that what is the regular functioning of the prosecution is assimilated to pressure". Already in office at the time of the Fillon affair, she "recalls that her action was always part of the exercise of her legal prerogatives to ensure the application of the law and the proper functioning of the public prosecutor's offices placed under her authority" .
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Going unnoticed, Eliane Houlette's declarations resurfaced thanks to an article in Le Point and provoked the indignation of very distant political families. LR, who has often denounced an "instrumentalization" of justice in the Fillon case, has raised "extremely serious" charges. Both targeted by PNF investigations, the RN and LFI have seen in these "pressures" proof of justice to orders.
"The truth is on the way", according to Jean-Luc Mélenchon
"The former head of the financial center admits having acted under pressure in the Fillon affair. Responsible? The chief prosecutor who ordered the odious searches against LFI (in reality ordered by the Paris prosecutor's office, editor's note). The truth is along the way, "tweeted Jean-Luc Mélenchon, leader of the Insoumis. "And to say that when we denounce the instrumentalization of justice, some people call us conspirators ... The truth comes out and this is only the tip of the iceberg," commented Marine Le Pen on Twitter.
Parliamentary committee of inquiry: the former head of the financial center admits having acted under pressure in the Fillon case. Responsible? The head of the prosecution who ordered the heinous searches against LFI. The truth is on the way.
- Jean-Luc Mélenchon (@JLMelenchon) June 18, 2020According to the rules in force, the public prosecutor's office may request information from the public prosecutor's office and transmit it to the directorate of criminal affairs and pardons within the Chancellery, which can forward it to the office of the Minister of Justice. On the other hand, the Taubira law of 2013 prohibits the Keeper of the Seals from giving instructions in individual files.