The Keeper of the Seals Eric Dupond-Moretti said he was “
totally calm
” and estimated Wednesday, January 13 that he had “
nothing to fear
” after the opening of the judicial investigation for “
illegal taking of interests
” which targets him .
Read also: Éric Dupond-Moretti accused of "illegal taking of interests"
"
If the objective of all this, as it is already expressed by some, is to prohibit me from working, those will be at their expense
", declared the Minister of Justice, questioned on the sidelines of a debate on juvenile justice before the Senate Law Commission.
The investigation formally opened on Wednesday and carried out by the investigating committee of the Court of Justice of the Republic (CJR), the only court empowered to judge ministers, follows the complaints filed in December by three unions (Union Syndicale des Magistrates , Syndicat de la magistrature, Unit SNM FO) and the Anticor association.
"
So I wanted to know if, from your point of view, it was problematic in relation to your situation as a Keeper of the Seals to be the subject of a judicial investigation before the CJR and if this was not the case today. hui, at what stage of the procedure do you think it would become problematic to ensure your function as Keeper of the Seals?
“, Asked the vice-president PS of the law commission, Marie-Pierre de La Gontrie.
"
My crime is to have exercised my functions exactly as all my predecessors would have done in similar circumstances
," replied the minister, thanking the senator for her "
kind interpellation
" on her "
fate to come
".
"
I have indeed followed the recommendations of my administration, I will demonstrate it
", he said.
"
This is my answer
,
Madam Senator
," Dupond-Moretti continued.
“
It will undoubtedly be more complete, very complete later on, I have nothing to fear and I am totally at ease
”.
At the heart of the accusations against the minister is the administrative investigation he ordered against three magistrates of the National Financial Prosecutor's Office (PNF), who had participated in a preliminary investigation aimed at identifying the mole who allegedly informed Nicolas Sarkozy and his lawyer Thierry Herzog that they were bugged.
During these investigations, detailed telephone bills of several lawyers had been examined, including that of the future minister who had lodged a complaint before withdrawing it when he entered the government.
