The former Minister of the Interior is implicated because of a leaflet in his favor distributed at the time by Pierre-Christophe Baguet, Mayor of Boulogne-Billancourt and deputy coming out of the Hauts-de-Seine.
Le Monde with AFP
He was the essential man of the Sarkozy Presidency. Former Minister of the Interior Claude Gueant, aged 76, will be judged in Nanterre in February for “Illicit financing” of his 2012 legislative campaign, because of the diffusion of a leaflet in his favor by Pierre-Christophe. Baguet, Mayor of Boulogne-Billancourt and deputy coming out of the Hauts-de-Seine.
Claude Gueant is also referred to the Criminal Court for “Scam for Reimbursement of Campaign Fees”.
In January 2012, Pierre-Christophe Baguet announced support Claude Guéant to succeed him. In a letter to his citizens, he detailed the reasons for his support to the Minister. This leaflet had been denounced by the dissent candidate, Thierry Solete, who suspected Mr. Baguet to have funded it for the money of the municipality. The old right arm of Nicolas Sarkozy had been defeated in the second round by Mr. Solere, now near Emmanuel Macron.
An investigation was opened in February 2014 and Claude Gueant had been indicted in July 2017. “This case corresponds to ancient facts, dating from almost ten years, in which Claude Guéant has ceased to justify. ‘It was not concerned with the slightest criminal qualification, “reacted, with the France-Presse Agency (AFP), his lawyer, M e philippe mouthz el-Ghozi. “At the upcoming hearing, he will continue to justify his innocence in this case in which he appears more, in reality, as the victim of the awkwardness of a third party,” he added.
His client is returned to the Criminal Court with six other persons, and the hearing will be held on February 15 and 16, 2022, “said El-Ghozi,” Mouch El-Ghozi.
Contact, Thierry Sole, who has retained his deputy headquarters (today LRM) since his victory against Claude Gueant, did not wish to comment. He had denounced the leaflet but did not constitute civilian part.
For his part, Pierre-Christophe Baguet, who is still the Mayor LR of Boulogne-Billancourt, acknowledged his guilt and must be tried in the coming weeks during a preliminary recognition of guilt (CRPC), sort of pleader-culprit to the French. He acknowledges having inserted a message on the legislative elections in a municipal bulletin, contributing, by fact, according to the magistrates, to the campaign of Mr. Guéant.
“There is no harm for the city, no misappropriation of public funds and any personal enrichment of anyone. The mayor recognizes a mistake that the magistrates qualified as an offense,” reacted, with AFP, M e Mario Stasi, the lawyer of Pierre-Christophe Baguet. Its client will be judged for “participation in the financing of an election campaign per legal person by donation or by supply of advantage.”
series of judicial business
This new trial for Claude Gueant is added to the surveys paid by the Elysée under Nicolas Sarkozy, for which he is currently appearing in Paris for favoritism and misappropriation of public funds by negligence. Mr. Guéant is also referred to as a possible Libyan funding from Nicolas Sarkozy’s campaign in 2007.
In this sprawling case, the shutters concerning the sales of Flemish paintings and a villa on the Côte d’Azur, involving Claude Guéant and Alexandre Djouhri, have been disjointed.
The two men await the requisitions of the financial prosecutor’s office, before the final decision of the investigating judge on their referral or not to the Tribunal. Mm. Guéant and DOUJOUHI remain, however, indicted, in particular for “criminal association” as part of the central judicial information still in progress.
The former Grand Clerk of the State, today retired, was also definitely sentenced in 2019 to two years’ imprisonment, including a firm, 75,000 euros fine and a prohibition to perform a function for five years, in the liquid bonuses file of the Ministry of the Interior.