The Béziers public prosecutor’s office announced at the beginning of the afternoon the release of Gilles d’Etorre.
Credit : Image d’illustration
The investigating judges in charge of the case “ordered the release” of Mr. d’Ettore, “taking into account in particular (his) resignation from all his elected mandates”, indicated in a press release the Béziers prosecutor , Raphaël Balland. The prosecution, which had requested his continued detention, did not appeal. The former mayor has in particular “the obligation to reside with a friend in Dordogne” and he is prohibited from “going to Hérault, leaving the national territory and coming into contact (…) with a long list of persons named by name and, in general, with any person exercising elective mandates or functions” at the town hall of Agde or in the urban community, according to the prosecution.
Gilles d’Ettore, former deputy and mayor of Agde since 2001, claims for his part to have been “trapped”. A request for release at the beginning of April was rejected by the courts. He finally resigned from his position on May 31, after two months of pre-trial detention. The investigation, during which dozens of people were interviewed, was initiated in October 2023. It experienced a first thunderclap in March with the arrest of Mr. d’Ettore (Les Républicains), its implementation examination for “illegal taking of interests and corruption” and his placement in pre-trial detention.
The main character of this file is a forty-year-old who presents herself as a clairvoyant, medium and “healer”. In pre-trial detention, this mother explained to investigators that she had succeeded, by modifying her voice, in deceiving several of her relatives, including the mayor of Agde, by making them believe that they were “in conversation with a supernatural being coming from from beyond.” She admitted having benefited, thanks to this stratagem, from numerous services, in particular the recruitment within the commune or the agglomeration of five of her relatives, and from gifts offered by entrepreneurs in connection with Mr. d’Ettore, including handling her lavish third wedding last year.
The Béziers prosecutor requested on Wednesday his release under judicial supervision – “on the condition in particular of requiring him to reside far from the department” – before the judge of freedoms and detention, who will render his decision on Friday. According to Raphaël Balland, the investigations should last “many more months”.
