US EditionFrench ex-PM Fillon handed suspended prison sentence over wife's fake job
- On Tuesday, François Fillon, who previously served as France’s Prime Minister, was sentenced to a four-year suspended prison term after being convicted of embezzling public funds by employing his wife, Penelope Fillon, in a fictitious parliamentary role.
- The 2017 'Penelopegate' scandal broke after revelations of Penelope's paid parliamentary role from 1986 to 2013, which lacked proof of actual work, derailing Fillon's presidential campaign.
- Penelope Fillon received a two-year suspended sentence, a fine, and a five-year election ban, while Fillon must pay €375,000 fine and faces the same election ban ordered by the Paris appeals court.
- Fillon's lawyer Antonin Lévy expressed approval of the ruling that avoided prison for Fillon, saying it restored perspective to the case, while Fillon argued that the practice of employing parliamentary staff without actual work was widespread and suggested his treatment was influenced by his presidential campaign.
- The verdict implies a reduced sentence from 2022's harsher terms, but the Court of Cassation has ordered a new trial on sentencing, keeping legal proceedings ongoing and leaving Fillon a free man without detention measures.
72 Articles
72 Articles
Sentenced in 2022 to a year in prison, François Fillon saw his sentence reduced on appeal, but the former Prime Minister remains heavily condemned and will be ineligible for five years.
The former French Prime Minister François Fillon, who was found guilty of his wife's fictitious engagements, Penelope, received a 4-year prison sentence in March, amending EUR 375,000 and...
The former Prime Minister was sentenced on Tuesday to four years' suspended imprisonment, five years of ineligibility, a fine and damages for his wife's fictitious employment in the Assembly.
The Paris Court of Appeal finally sentenced the former Prime Minister to 4 years' suspended imprisonment, with a fine of 375,000 euros and 5 years' ineligibility.
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