The judicial noose is tightening on Rachida Dati. Confirmed on September 21 in her position on rue de Valois within the government of Michel Barnier, the minister of culture could be the subject of a trial. As learned The World with the National Financial Prosecutor's Office (PNF), the latter requested, in its final indictment, delivered on November 13, the referral to the criminal court of the mayor (Les Républicains) of 7e district of Paris for “concealment of abuse of power and breach of trust”, “corruption and passive influence peddling by person vested with a public elective mandate within an international organization” (in this case, the European Parliament) in the context of the Carlos Ghosn affair, named after the former CEO of Renault-Nissan (2005-2019), targeted by two international arrest warrants from French justice and on the run in Lebanon.
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It is now up to the investigating judges to issue their order and rule on the dismissal of Ms.me Dati before the criminal court. Contacted, the lawyers of Mme Dati, Olivier Pardo and Olivier Baratelli, assert that“an indictment is only the prosecution’s view of a case. It does not reflect reality. While all the evidence of Rachida Dati's innocence has been provided, this indictment goes against the grain of all the elements, testimonies, documents, documents provided. »
The PNF also requested the referral to the criminal court of Carlos Ghosn for “abuse of powers by company director, breach of trust, corruption and active influence peddling”. Contacted by The Worldhis lawyer, Jacqueline Laffont, was in the process of determining her position regarding this indictment.
A dismissal of proceedings was requested by the PNF on the aspect of the contracts concluded between the Dutch subsidiary of the Renault-Nissan alliance, Renault-Nissan BV (RNBV), and the company AB Conseil, the company of lobbyist Alain Bauer, witness assisted since 2021.
“I was never informed of his intervention”
The investigating judges focus on the fees (900,000 euros excluding taxes for allegedly 900 hours of work) paid to Mme Dati as a lawyer, from 2010 to 2012, by RNBV. At this time, Mme Dati was a Member of the European Parliament, substitute member of the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy. However, lobbying activities are prohibited in the European Parliament.
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The investigating magistrates doubt the reality of the minister's work. Apart from a few general notes, the judges found little trace of his supposed services: absence of annual activity reports from Mme Dati, linked to Mr. Ghosn by a confidential fee agreement signed in October 2009, relating to “the group's international expansion policy, particularly in the countries of the Middle East and the Maghreb” ; absence of expense reports for possible trips abroad; rare meetings between Mme Dati and M. Ghosn; “lack of documentation” capable of justifying the payments, absence of “detailed invoices” by Mme Dati and “written termination indicating the end of [s]a mission »according to an audit carried out in 2019 on the management of RNBV.
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