Versailles (AFP)

After five days of a sometimes heated river trial, the prosecution requires Tuesday in the Ikea France case, accused of having spied on employees and customers, a moment eagerly awaited by the 120 or so civil parties who have claimed millions of euros in damages. and interests.

Ikea France, sued as a legal person, faces up to 3.75 million euros in fines.

Revealed in 2012 by the press, this so-called espionage affair had forced the French subsidiary to dismiss four officials.

These monitoring practices are "in opposition to the values ​​of Ikea", declared in court Karine Havas, legal representative of Ikea France and current financial director.

Since March 22, two former CEOs of Ikea France, store managers but also police officers and the boss of a private investigative company have taken the helm.

They deferred responsibility for the charges, namely unlawful collection and disclosure of personal information, violation of professional secrecy or concealment of these offenses, which exposes some of them to a maximum penalty of ten years imprisonment.

The investigation revealed a well-functioning surveillance system, employees and even sometimes customers;

from the criminal record to the lifestyle, including heritage.

If the defendants appear for acts committed between 2009 and 2012, these illegal practices date back to the early 2000s, according to the prosecution.

- "Mass checks"

The former "Mr. security" of Ikea France, Jean-François Paris, described "mass checks" of employees, including trade unionists.

At the helm, he repeated that he had followed an instruction formulated in 2007 by the former CEO Jean-Louis Baillot, statements formally contested by the person concerned.

"Jean-François Paris had full autonomy to work, he did not have to report to me," insisted Mr. Baillot.

His successor at the head of Ikea France in 2010, Stefan Vanoverbeke, also on trial, said he was "shocked" by these surveillance practices, seeing "isolated initiatives" but not "Ikea policy".

Director of Risk Management at Ikea France from 2002 to 2012, Jean-François Paris sent lists of people "to be tested" to Eirpace, headed by Jean-Pierre Fourès.

The boss of this company specializing in "business advice" is notably accused of having, through the police, resorted to STIC, the System for processing the infractions noted, which he defended himself.

This former General Intelligence (RG) thus provoked the hilarity of the room during his interrogation, explaining to have used "imagination and ingenuity" to obtain information, via neighborhood surveys and a suitable use of Google.

One of the police officers in question for his part assured to have consulted the STIC about employees of Ikea "only within the framework of procedures", investigations for "thefts for fraud", of which the investigators did not however never found a trace.

During their pleadings Monday, the lawyers of the civil parties asked for an "exemplary judgment" of the sign as well as millions of euros in damages;

including two million for Force Ouvrière (FO).

The trial will continue with defense pleadings from Tuesday afternoon.

© 2021 AFP