The year 2025 has barely begun and a letter, addressed Monday to the town hall of Limoges, risks creating a stir in the coming months. The missive informs Emile Roger Lombertie, mayor of Limoges and vice-president of Limoges Métropole, Catherine Mauguien-Sicard and Jean-Marie Lagedamont, all elected in Limoges and vice-presidents of the intercommunality, of the opening of a judicial investigation for harassment.
Six alleged victims
The public prosecutor of Tulle, François Tessier, confirmed that this opening of judicial information for acts of harassment did indeed concern the three Limougeaud elected officials.
Facts for which Philippe Bernard-Reymond and Marie-Caroline Turlotte filed a complaint in 2024.
The first was in charge of city policy, the second the thorny issue of BHLS (High level of service buses). Two areas that were sources of multiple tensions between the metropolis and the town hall for months. Marie-Caroline Turlotte has since left the intercommunality and the city. Philippe Bernard-Reymond was, in recent months, an agent of the metropolis, in addition to being a referent for the left-wing party Place publique.
In her complaint, Parisian lawyer Christelle Mazza developed the facts of “interpersonal moral harassment” and “institutionalized harassment by the total absence of hierarchical intervention despite several alerts”, concerning her two clients. She had also sent a report under article 40, concerning a possible sexual assault of the mayor, committed years earlier.
-But the novelty of this letter, in addition to informing those involved of the opening of the judicial investigation, is the presence of six alleged victims, who appeared during the investigation. Some have, at this stage, not filed a complaint.
“The opening of this judicial investigation is excellent news,” commented Me Christelle Mazza. The release of the word allowed other alleged victims to be brought to light. This shows that my clients’ complaint was not dilatory. »
The mayor says he is not aware of it
Last February, the revelation of the affair by the newspaper Le Monde created an earthquake in the Limougaud political microcosm.
For the moment, we do not know where the investigations will be carried out. Because if the information was opened in Tulle, the local prosecutor’s office and the general prosecutor’s office requested a change of scenery for the case, outside the jurisdiction of the Limoges Court of Appeal, in order to avoid any partiality and ensure the serenity of the investigation. A request which will soon be studied by the Court of Cassation.
The investigating judge who will carry out the investigation must, at the end of it, decide whether there is reason to dismiss the case. Or on the contrary to indict all or part of the elected officials. When contacted, the mayor of Limoges said he was not aware of the letter. Catherine Mauguien-Sicard confirmed by SMS that she had been informed at the beginning of the week, specifying that she had “never been summoned by anyone”. Jean-Marie Lagedamont also confirms having been informed but indicates that he has “never been summoned. To date, I have not had any information regarding an ongoing investigation.”
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