Paris (AFP)
After the theatrical flights of the trial, place Friday at the judgment sanctioning the years of "tax evasion" of the Balkany couple: for this "fault" partly recognized by elected officials of Levallois-Perret, the prosecutor's office asked for the immediate incarceration of the mayor.
This decision is the first expected after an atypical two-part trial in the Paris Criminal Court in the spring: one devoted to tax fraud, the other to charges of money laundering and corruption for which it will be necessary to wait another month , with a deliberation set for October 18th.
The LR mayor of Levallois, an upscale commune in the west of Paris, had appeared without his wife and first assistant Isabelle. So convalescent after a suicide attempt in early May, it is better and posts again actively photos and comments on social networks.
Patrick Balkany, after his highly publicized trial, resumed his municipal activities as if nothing had happened, swaying on stage during the "Summer Festival" in Levallois or offering himself the cheers of his administered at an archbishop's municipal council on July 1st.
Between black anger, your boaster and long digressions on the city he runs almost continuously since 1983, the former MP had long defended in court.
At 71, however, he appeared to be shocked by the heavy penalties imposed on him by the National Financial Prosecutor's Office (NFP).
In the "tax evasion" section on Friday, the prosecution applied for four years in prison with immediate imprisonment. Against his wife, four years of which two closes, a sentence. And against both, ten years of ineligibility, the maximum.
"You are a great tax fraud Sir, such behavior especially when they come from elected officials are not tolerable," he had launched one of the two prosecutors.
The immediate incarceration demanded sparked the ire of the defense. "Should it be sent to prison for everyone to enjoy?", Insurgent his lawyer Eric Dupond-Moretti, calling not to add a "humiliation" to the conviction of his client, who acknowledged " mistakes".
- "Ocean of Cash" -
In this case, the PNF and the tax authorities, who had lodged a complaint in 2015, criticize the Balkany for not paying EWB between 2010 and 2015, despite assets estimated at 16 million euros a year minimum. But also to have reported largely undervalued income between 2009 and 2014.
In total, the amounts evaded are estimated at more than 4 million euros of taxes on income and wealth, an amount disputed by the defense although the couple admit they have not declared their assets in Switzerland.
Among the list of assets that should have been included in the calculation of the tax, the accusation and the tax had pointed in particular the luxurious villa Pamplemousse of Saint-Martin, that Isabella Balkany belatedly admitted owning, and a sumptuous riad in Marrakech , that the couple denies having bought.
The Balkany are also accused of having undervalued the value of the mill they own in Giverny (Normandy), estimated at 4 million by the tax authorities. And to have evolved in an "ocean of cash" without commensurate with their known income.
The prosecution had not dwelt on the origins of their fortune, a prescription.
Patrick Balkany claimed that the couple had "eaten" its capital from inheritances hidden in Switzerland, and discussed the flow of gold bars left by his father.
"I'm not saying he's lying to you when he talks about an undeclared inheritance, it's possible, but it had to be taxed," the prosecutor replied.
The defense had argued that "the considerable wealth of families" easily explains the difference between declared and sumptuary expenditures, and attempted to discredit the couple's estimates of the couple's wealth.
The second judgment, expected on October 18, promises to be even more risky for Patrick Balkany, against whom seven years in prison, immediate incarceration and confiscation of all his property were required.
He is also threatened by another case: suspected of having used drivers of his town hall for personal purposes, he is summoned mid-September by the judicial police.
© 2019 AFP