The situation was not tenable. This Monday, the director of Sciences Po Paris recently heard by the police in a case of domestic violence, Mathias Vicherat, “proposed” his “temporary withdrawal”, in a message addressed to the entire school.
“I proposed to the president of the National Foundation of Political Sciences (FNSP), Laurence Bertrand Dorléac, to temporarily withdraw from my functions according to modalities, a timetable and a duration that it is up to her to define and that “she will present in the different bodies this week”, it is written.
Placed in police custody on December 3
Three meetings are taking place at Sciences Po this week, meetings planned for a long time on the calendar: the institute council on Tuesday, the FNSP board of directors on Wednesday and finally the social and economic council on Thursday.
Mathias Vicherat and his ex-partner Anissa Bonnefont, who mutually accused each other of domestic violence, were taken into police custody on December 3 before being released the next day. A preliminary investigation was ordered by the Paris prosecutor’s office.
Mathias Vicherat disputes the facts
In the message addressed to the Sciences Po community, Mathias Vicherat repeats that he “contests the acts of violence which have been reported by the press and on social networks”. “Never and under no circumstances have I committed such acts. I want to emphasize that at the end of our police custody, no complaint was filed, no judicial control or removal measure was taken,” he continues.
Sciences Po students occupied the historic building of this higher education establishment last week, to demand the resignation of their director.