Far-right leader Marine Le Pen found guilty of embezzlement by French court
London: A French court has delivered a significant blow to Marine Le Pen’s presidential hopes, convicting the far-right politician of embezzling European Union funds.
In a ruling that potentially reshapes the European political landscape, the court sentenced Le Pen to four years in prison, half of which was suspended. The decision, delivered on Monday, means that Le Pen, who had long been seen as a leading contender to succeed President Emmanuel Macron, will be excluded from the race when his term ends in 2027.
Marine Le Pen, leader of National Rally, leaves the court in Paris after the ruling.Credit: Bloomberg
The court found that Le Pen had played a central role in organising a system that allowed the illegal payments to be funnelled to party insiders. While she did not personally profit from the scheme, judges noted that it allowed a small group of senior party figures, including Le Pen’s father, Jean-Marie Le Pen, to enrich themselves.
The ruling also banned her from holding any public office for five years. The prison sentence, though suspended during her appeal, will remain in effect unless overturned, with Le Pen potentially serving her time under house arrest with an electronic bracelet.
Dressed in a white blouse and blue jacket, Le Pen sat mostly stone-faced during the proceedings. However, as the ruling was read out, her composure cracked, according to reports. Upon hearing the immediate ban on her candidacy, she stood up and left the courtroom without addressing reporters.
Le Pen and 24 other officials from her National Rally party were accused of having used money intended for European Union parliamentary aides to pay staff who worked for the party between 2004 and 2016, in violation of the 27-nation bloc’s regulations. Le Pen and her co-defendants denied wrongdoing.
Marine Le Pen, leader of National Rally, arrives at court in Paris on Monday.Credit: Bloomberg
The judge also handed down guilty verdicts to eight other current or former members of her party who, like her, previously served as elected members in the European Parliament.
At the heart of the case was the misuse of €4.4 million ($7.5 million) in EU funds intended to pay assistants for members of the European Parliament. Instead, the court found that Le Pen and her allies used the money to pay party staffers who were not engaged in official parliamentary work. She was also fined €100,000.
