Sarkozy’s Parisian mansion targeted in dawn raid by police probing corruption claims

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Sarkozy’s Parisian mansion targeted in dawn raid by police probing corruption claims

July 4th, 2012

FAKE NEWS for the Zionist agenda

Accused of accepting £670,000 from France’s richest woman in return for tax breaks
Butler, nurse and chauffeur say Sarkozy paid visits to the L’Oreal heiress’s mansion

By
Peter Allen

PUBLISHED:

11:13 EST, 3 July 2012

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UPDATED:

13:55 EST, 3 July 2012

The home and offices of Nicolas Sarkozy and Carla Bruni were today raided by police investigating claims of widespread corruption.

Detectives launched a dawn swoop on the Paris mansion where the ex-French president and his former supermodel third wife live.

There were coordinated raids on Mr Sarkozy’s new office in the centre of the French capital, and on the law firm which represents him.

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In the spotlight: Police seized evidence from the home of Nicolas Sarkozy and his wife Carla Bruni, and from the former president's nearby offices

In the spotlight: Police seized evidence from the home of Nicolas Sarkozy and his wife Carla Bruni, and from the former president’s nearby offices

Papers and computer discs were seized, along with any other material ‘likely to be of evidential value’, said a police source.

All the raids were connected to the so-called Bettencourt affair, in which Mr Sarkozy is accused of accepting cash from L’Oreal heiress Liliane Bettencourt in return for tax breaks.

Judge Jean-Michel Gentil believes that Mrs Bettencourt, France’s richest woman, may have illegally contributed two payments of 400,000 euros (£335,000) each to Mr Sarkozy’s 2007 election campaign.

Both were traced to Swiss accounts, and one was allegedly received by Mr Sarkozy in person in Paris, in return for offering Mrs Bettencourt tax breaks once he came to power.

Numerous witnesses including a butler, nurse and chauffeur have described seeing Mr Sarkozy paying personal visits to the Bettencourt mansion in Neuilly-sur-Seine, the upmarket Paris suburb.

Power: Sarkozy is accused of accepting cash from L'Oreal heiress Liliane Bettencourt in return for tax breaks

Power: Sarkozy is accused of accepting cash from L’Oreal heiress Liliane Bettencourt in return for tax breaks

The 57-year-old lost his presidential immunity from prosecution in June after losing the election in May to the Socialist Francois Hollande.

Mr Sarkozy has insisted that he could not have used illegal cash to fund his election as French President because he did not write about it in his diary.

But a judicial source close to the case said: ‘A personal diary is unlikely to have recorded the illegal receipt of cash.’

There is only one official mention of a meeting between Mr Sarkozy, Mrs Bettencourt and her late husband, Andre, in Sarkozy’s diary.

It took place on February 24, 2007 – two months before the first round of that year’s presidential elections, but Mr Sarkozy insists it was just a 25 minute ‘courtesy call’.

Mr Sarkozy’s close friend and former treasurer and minister, Eric Woerth, is already under examination and facing charges over the affair. Both he and Sarkozy deny any wrong-doing.

Mr Sarkozy’s lawyer Thierry Herzog said the former president’s personal diary would prove his innocence, and that his client was going on the offensive ‘to defend himself against accusations made publicly against him for several months.’

Mr Sarkozy is also facing allegations that he profited from illegal arms sales to Pakistan, and that he accepted millions from former Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi.

Since being kicked out of the Elysee, Mr Sarkozy is living in Paris permanently with Ms Bruni and their baby daughter, Giulia.

The conservative politician is a trained lawyer and had opened an office in Paris from where he was expected to work on his defence to all the allegations.

Both Mr Sarkozy and his wife left on a holiday to Canada yesterday, so were not at home during the police raids, said Mr Sarkozy’s lawyer, Thierry Herzog.