After the complaint from the Anticor association, the Paris prosecutor's office opened an investigation against the group of private crèches People&Baby.
An investigation was opened after a complaint from the Anticor association, in particular for fraud and embezzlement of public funds, against the group of private crèches People&Baby, pinned down in an investigation by journalist Victor Castanet, the Paris prosecutor's office said on Monday, requested by the AFP.
In his investigative book “Les Ogres” (Flammarion), released in mid-September, the investigative journalist describes the “voracity” of certain private nursery groups and in particular the People&Baby group.
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Multiple counts
According to the prosecution, Anticor's complaint denounces “acts of fraud to the detriment of a public person or an organization responsible for a public service mission, embezzlement of public funds, abuse of corporate property, breach of trust, complicity in tax fraud, potentially attributable to People&Baby crèches”.
The investigation was entrusted to the direction of the judicial police on November 14, according to the same source.
“Faced with the inertia of the public authorities, it seemed necessary to us to act,” said Paul Cassia, president of Anticor, during a press conference on November 12 announcing the filing of the complaint.
“The starting point of this affair is the book by Victor Castanet on the management of a company which manages private crèches,” he continued.
The association's lawyer, Me Vincent Brengarth, detailed the different qualifications targeted by the complaint falling “in the particular context of these crèches which benefit (…) from public aid from the State” and from the “deficiency in the number of places in crèche”.
According to him, the amount of money embezzled would be “at least 2.1 million euros, a figure which only concerns partial unemployment aid fraud”.
“Practices out of step with the values we hold today”
Currently, France has 460,000 collective childcare places, of which 50% are in public crèches, 27% in private crèches (Little Red Riding Hoods, Babilou, La Maison Bleue, People&Baby…) and 23% of association crèches.
In a press release sent to AFP in mid-September, People&Baby – whose founder and president Christophe Durieux was ousted from his post in the spring – indicated that “the practices described in the book” by Victor Castanet “are totally out of step with the values we carry today.
The group's new management claimed to have “begun a profound transformation” with a new president and promised to correct “without delay” any “dysfunction that could be identified”.
“Independent audits” will be put in place and “we are committed to transparently reporting on the actions implemented and their monitoring,” added People&Baby.
Accelerated backup procedure
The People&Baby group announced this Tuesday to open an accelerated safeguard procedure for its benefit to “strengthen the financial structure of the company and enable the financing of its refoundation”.
Open Monday November 18this accelerated backup procedure will be spread over 2 to 4 monthsand will allow the group to “restructure its liabilities, obtain new financing and relaunch on a sound basis”.
“Despite the legacy of the past, we want to build a future based on healthy and solid foundations with the quality of care and the well-being of children as our only priorities,” said Philippe Tapié, president of the group.
