” But who ? Whose role was it to check the invoices? “

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The site of the event company Bygmalion – JOEL SAGET / AFP

  • Postponed due to the coronavirus in March, the trial of the so-called “Bygmalion” case resumed on May 20 before the 11th chamber of the Paris judicial tribunal.
  • Former UMP executives, responsible for the 2012 campaign and leaders of the Bygmalion company: in total, fourteen people will be tried for this case of false invoices, including the former head of state Nicolas Sarkozy, who incurs a sentence of one year in prison.
  • During the hearings of the last days, the court became certain that the leaders of the subcontracting company had set up a fraudulent system on the orders of the UMP.

At the Paris judicial court,

It was a little after 3 p.m. when Caroline Viguier let her annoyance speak for itself. ” But who ? Whose role was it? Whose role was it to check the accounts? Whose role was it to check the invoices? “By chaining the questions, the president of the 11th chamber of the judicial tribunal of Paris ended up saying out loud what everyone is thinking quietly since the opening of the trial of the” Bygmalion “case on May 20. “Every time someone comes to the bar, it’s not him! It’s not his fault ! “

In this case, it was not that of Pierre Chassat. Standing in front of her for over an hour, the former UMP communications director spends most of his time looking at the ground. No doubt because if he looks up, he cannot help but see the giant screen on which the evidence is projected. “Expenditure commitments”, in this case.

Like that of April 26, 2012. In the amount of 5,389,784.76 euros, to be exact. Or the one from the beginning of 2012. 2,999,199.66 euros for that one. Both signed by the hand of Pierre Chassat in his capacity as “applicant”. “Yes, I am signing in good faith. Except that I’m not really the applicant, he gets bogged down at the stand. These are global invoices. We say to ourselves that it is easier for the accounting… ”

“I signed in good faith”

At the time, it was perhaps “simpler”. But it was mostly illegal, according to judge Serge Tournaire, who decided to send Nicolas Sarkozy and thirteen other people to court. Because the amounts appearing on the “commitments” correspond in reality to the costs of the campaign meetings. But if they bear the stamp of Pierre Chassat, it is because they were supported by the UMP to allow the “candidate president” to remain under the spending limit, set at 22.5 million by law.

“Did you know there was a cap?” “, Asks Caroline Viguier. “I had an idea, yes… admits the defendant. But I signed in good faith. “Faced with this response, the president then released what is in the process of becoming her “Gimmick” : “It’s all the same curious …”

A bogus convention on law and justice …

Started two weeks ago now, the trial very quickly demonstrated that Nicolas Sarkozy had benefited from a boost of 20 million euros paid by the UMP to try to stay at the Elysee Palace. But no one knows who came up with the idea of ​​the false invoice system allowing the maneuver. No one knows who put it in place. But everyone signed up.

For the deception to work, the UMP had the idea of ​​setting up bogus “conventions”, the title of which was only used to appear on false invoices. Here, a meeting on “fishing”. There, another on “law and justice”. The deputy prosecutor, Vanessa Pérrée, knows this well. And she can not help but tickle the defendant in turn.

“Basically, three conventions were planned. And finally, there were 59 fictitious ones. Don’t you think there is a subject? “No, none …”, answers Pierre Chassat, who has nothing to say either on the cost of these alleged conventions: 300,000 euros each. And here is Vanessa Pérrée who projects photos of the usual meetings with Jean-François Cope on a platform in front of an audience of about twenty elected officials. As if no one was going to notice that this kind of gathering could hardly cost 300,000 euros …

Jérôme Lavrilleux and “Sarko’s eye” at the helm

As every day since the start of the trial, the name of Jean-François Cope has obviously been mentioned. Just like that of Nicolas Sarkozy. Gradually reducing the concentric circles of her reasoning, President Caroline Viguier is moving forward to try to disentangle the true from the false. And finally understand if this famous system was blown away by Jean-François Copé, very close to the leaders of Bygmalion. Or by the former head of state, who faces a year in prison for having “benefited” from it himself.

The first elements of response are expected at the bar. Thursday, Jérôme Lavrilleux, the closest collaborator of Jean-François Copé, must be heard. And he already warned that he was going to throw it all away. Before him, it is Eric Cesari who must pass on the grill. His nickname at the material time? “Sarko’s eye. The internal war of the right will be able to resume …

Follow this trial live on our journalist’s Twitter account: @vvantighem





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