Two men indicted in a case of destabilization of relatives of Prince Albert of Monaco

Europe 1 with AFP 11:12 a.m., October 30, 2022

Two men suspected of having participated in a destabilization operation against the backdrop of real estate issues targeting four relatives of Prince Albert II of Monaco, have been indicted in Paris, the prosecution said on Sunday, confirming information from the

A preliminary investigation opened in November 2021

The two men were indicted on Thursday for "concealment of breaches of an automated data processing system" and placed under judicial supervision, said the prosecution.

The two suspects, a Belgian business manager and a Monegasque presenting himself as a lawyer, according to the

, were arrested on Tuesday and then placed in police custody at the premises of the cybercrime brigade (BL2C) of the judicial police. from Paris.

A preliminary investigation had been opened in November 2021 to examine a complaint by four men denouncing the dissemination, on a website entitled "Dossiers du Rocher", of videos, confidential email exchanges and incriminating articles in connection with real estate projects in Monaco. , according to the

A "well-orchestrated" operation

These four men, who claim to be victims, are "Laurent Anselmi, chief of staff to Prince Albert II, Thierry Lacoste, lawyer and childhood friend of the prince, Didier Linotte, president of the Supreme Court of Monaco, the local constitutional court, and Claude Palmero, chartered accountant and administrator of the sovereign's property", specifies the

indicating that they were referred to as "Club des 4" or "G4".

According to a source quoted by the newspaper, the two suspects "are probably only second knives in this well-orchestrated operation" which required "significant financial resources", i.e. several million euros.

The judicial information which was opened on Thursday also targets the offenses of maintaining data in an automated system, fraudulent extraction of data from a computer system and interception of electronic correspondence, underlined the prosecution. 

Real estate development in the Principality of Monaco, a microstate where the average price per m2 is among the highest in the world, is at the heart of financial issues.