The investigation into the false accusations of the Point having targeted the deputies La France insoumise (LFI) Raquel Garrido and Alexis Corbière accelerates. The investigations were entrusted, Thursday, September 8, to an examining magistrate to whom must be presented a former collaborator of the president of the Union of Democrats and Independents (UDI), Jean-Christophe Lagarde, who himself came out free of custody.
The Paris prosecutor’s office opened a judicial inquiry on Thursday morning “on the counts of fraud in an organized gang, forgery and use of forgery, theft of identity or personal data and concealment of theft”. As part of these investigations, a person “is referred today for presentation to an investigating judge and possible indictment”, said the prosecution. This suspect, Rudy Succar, had been in custody since Tuesday.
Jean-Christophe Lagarde, soon to be tried for fictitious employment, was arrested at his home on Wednesday morning, in the investigation into the false accusations of the Point having targeted Raquel Garrido and Alexis Corbière, in June. His police custody was lifted overnight from Wednesday to Thursday without prosecution at this stage, the prosecution announced. His lawyer declined to comment.
Anouar Bouhadjela, known as “Noam Anouar”, a police officer seconded to the town hall of Drancy (Seine-Saint-Denis), which was led by Mr. Lagarde from 2001 to 2017, before his wife, Aude Lavail-Lagarde, took over the head. The police custody of Anouar Bouhadjela was lifted Wednesday at the end of the day also without prosecution at this stage, according to a source close to the investigation, confirmed by the Paris prosecutor’s office.
” Everything is false “
“I am satisfied that the investigation is progressing. I remind you that this case goes far beyond simply defamation or insult. This is a violation of criminal law.”Raquel Garrido said on BFM-TV on Wednesday. “I hope that justice will go to the end of its work”added the “rebellious” MP.
In June, an article from Point, written by journalist Aziz Zemouri, unduly accused the couple of having exploited an undocumented cleaning lady, which the two elected officials immediately denied. ” Everything is false “, they reacted. The item was removed the next day. In an address to its readers, the newspaper admitted that the article had “turned out to be false” et “lying”.
The Garrido-Corbière couple had filed a complaint on June 27, followed the next day by that of Mr. Zemouri, who targets him, Jean-Christophe Lagarde and the policeman Anouar Bouhadjela. It was, according to his story, this policeman who contacted him at the end of May to put him in touch with a woman claiming to be an undeclared and undocumented housekeeper for the couple of deputies.
“Mr. Zemouri’s complaint is a smokescreen to dismiss the obvious lack of investigations he demonstrated, while crucifying one of his sources. He sought to protect himself from disapproval by firing on all cylinders, even the most irrational”reacted to Agence France-Presse Mes Nabila Asmane and Vincent Brengarth, lawyers for Mr. Anouar.
Jean-Christophe Lagarde, for his part, filed a complaint at the end of June for breach of trust.
“External smoke”
The Paris public prosecutor’s office opened a preliminary investigation on June 29 to examine these three complaints on the grounds of organized fraud, forgery and use of forgery, identity and data theft. The investigations were entrusted to the brigade for the repression of delinquency against the person (BRDP).
The Garrido-Corbière couple, for their part, filed a second defamation complaint against Aziz Zemouri and Point. Recognizing shortcomings in its “internal control process”the weekly launched an internal investigation and Mr. Zemouri was laid off at the end of June.
Point invoked a “external smoking, first” by writing that “people probably tried to sell a false story to discredit Raquel Garrido and Alexis Corbière”.
The magazine also explained that the screenshots of the text messages allegedly exchanged between the false employee and Raquel Garrido, published by the journalist, “constituted a rough montage”.
Jean-Christophe Lagarde, 54, will appear on October 3 before the Paris Criminal Court for embezzlement of public funds. He will be judged alongside his mother-in-law, Monique Escolier-Lavail, for having granted him a fictitious job in the National Assembly between May 2009 and August 2010. Facts he disputes.
