François Bayrou, a former French minister and a key ally of Emmanuel Macron, was acquitted Monday of charges of having misused European funds, while his political party and eight other accused officials were found guilty, reports Politico.
Bayrou was charged for his alleged role in an embezzlement scheme to use European Parliament funds to pay employees of the party he presides over, the Democratic Movement. The party, as a legal entity, was fined €300,000, TV channel BFM reported.
Three party officials, including former justice minister Michel Mercier, and five former MEPs — Janelly Fourtou, Thierry Cornillet, Bernard Lehideux, Anne Laperrouze and Jean-Luc Bennahmias — were sentenced to fines and suspended prison sentences.
Outside the courtroom, Bayrou said the court’s decision marked the end of a “seven-year-long nightmare.” It was initially estimated that the European Parliament had incurred €1.4 million in losses from the embezzlement scheme, but the institution’s legal defense had lowered the figure to €293,000 by the start of the trial, AFP reported.