Paris (AFP)

After two years of investigation, the investigating judges decided to summon several MoDem officials, including François Bayrou, Marielle de Sarnez and Sylvie Goulard, to indict them in the case of the supposedly fictitious jobs of the assistants. 'MEPs.

According to sources close to the case, about fifteen people in total, including MEPs, parliamentary assistants and officials of the centrist party, were summoned by the judges of the financial center of the Paris court, which have been investigating since July 2017 on this case .

The president of MoDem François Bayrou must be heard December 6, told AFP one of these sources, confirming information of the World. The mayor of Pau, pillar of the presidential majority, sat in the European Parliament from 1999 to 2002.

Marielle de Sarnez, MEP from 1999 to 2017 and number two of the centrist party, and Sylvie Goulard, MP from 2009 to 2017 and currently Deputy Governor of the Banque de France, will be auditioned "during the first week of December," says Le World.

Judges Charlotte Bilger, Bénédicte de Perthuis and Patricia Simon seek to determine whether parliamentary collaborators of the Modem were remunerated by the public funds of the European Parliament when they were actually assigned to other tasks for the centrist party.

"This is not because there is a convocation that there will be a decision of indictment," recalled Francois Bayrou, interviewed by the Republic of the Pyrenees, saying that these summons were part of "the following normal procedure ".

"I know that the accusations are unfounded and that the assistants were working for the MEPs (...) The important thing is to be able to prove what we are advancing." The reality, that proves itself and we have the good intention to do so, "he added.

- "Huge amount of coins" -

The MoDem parliamentary assistants' inquiry was initiated in June 2017 by the Paris public prosecutor's office, after a denunciation by a multi-party FN electorate, while the far-right party itself was the subject of a legal procedure. similar judicial system.

The investigations, quickly entrusted to investigating judges, led in the summer of 2017 to the resignation of François Bayrou as Minister of Justice, but also to those of Marielle de Sarnez (European Affairs) and Sylvie Goulard (Armées ).

As part of the investigation, opened for "breach of trust", "concealment of breach of trust" and "scams", a search was held at the headquarters of MoDem.François Bayrou, Marielle de Sarnez and Sylvie Goulard have Elsewhere, he was heard in open court by police officers.

According to a source close to the file, "the MoDem's lawyers have provided an immense amount of documents supposed to prove the work of the assistants", requiring a long work of cross-checking of the investigators and many hearings of these former collaborators.

The case of parliamentary assistants MoDem, added to the controversy over benefits for an American think tank, has cost Sylvie Goulard its place in the new European Commission, refused on October 10 by MEPs.

Mrs Goulard had accepted this summer to pay back to the European Parliament 45,000 euros corresponding to eight months' salary of one of her assistants, Stéphane Thérou, for whom she could not provide "proof of work". On August 30, the European Parliament closed the case for his case.

The Modem is not the only political formation in the lens of justice for supposedly fictitious jobs in the European Parliament. A similar investigation was thus opened for La France Insoumise (LFI) and for the FN, in which some twenty people, including Marine Le Pen, were indicted.

Questioned Tuesday night on the convening of Mr. Bayrou, the president of the FN told France Info "solidarity with all those who are victims of injustice". "I am quite concerned to see how judges today are trying to directly influence politics by mounting cases," she said.

© 2019 AFP