The former president of the FN, now National Rally (RN), Jean-Marie Le Pen, arrived Friday at the Paris court where he was summoned for an indictment in the case of fictitious jobs alleged party from the extreme right in the European Parliament, AFP journalists have found.
Jean-Marie Le Pen, 91, arrived just before 2 pm in the courthouse, accompanied by her two lawyers, and went to the office of Judge Claire Thépaut, walking with a cane.
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The co-founder of the National Front had himself announced on September 5 his summons by the examining magistrate for an indictment, linked in particular to the jobs of his former bodyguard Thierry Légier and a former adviser, Gael Nofri.
Jean-Marie Le Pen had then assured that it would be "a pleasure to say what (he) thinks of Mrs. Thépaut". His approach is "completely illegitimate" because "the executive power it represents (...) has no opportunity to interfere in the legislative," he said.
Jean-Marie Le Pen had refused to appear in court
Already convened on April 11 in this case, the former leader of the party frontist had refused to go to the judges, considering himself still protected by his immunity MEP. The latter was however lifted by the European Parliament, at the request of the French courts, on 12 March.
The investigating magistrates suspect the RN and its leaders of having set up "in a concerted and deliberate manner" a "system of diversion" of the envelopes allocated by the EU to each deputy to pay parliamentary associates, in order to allow the party to save money on his wages.
Marine Le Pen, Louis Aliot and Wallerand of Saint-Just indicted
The damage was estimated by the European Parliament at almost 7 million euros for the period 2009-2017.
In this case, about twenty indictments were pronounced, including that of Marine Le Pen, president of the RN and daughter of Jean-Marie Le Pen, the former companion of the latter Louis Aliot or the Wallerand party treasurer de Saint-Just, for "embezzlement of public funds" or complicity.
The party has also been indicted in this judicial information, which is also open for "organized fraud", suggesting possible aggravated indictments.