A preliminary investigation was opened on Thursday for "
moral harassment
" targeting the former Secretary of State Nathalie Elimas after accusations from collaborators and a report from the administration to justice, the Paris prosecutor's office said on Friday March 18, requested by AFP.
Read alsoEx-Secretary of State Nathalie Elimas, accused of harassment, files a complaint
Nathalie Elimas, in charge of Priority Education until her departure from the government at the beginning of March, had been the subject of an administrative investigation by the General Inspectorate for Higher Education and Research (IGESR) which had resulted in a report to justice received on March 10 by the Paris prosecutor's office.
The investigation was entrusted to the Brigade for the repression of delinquency against the person (BRDP).
Before opening a preliminary investigation, the magistrates of the Paris prosecutor's office first had to determine whether the facts alleged against the former secretary of state were detached from his function or not.
In the second hypothesis, the file would then have been sent to the Court of Justice of the Republic, the only jurisdiction authorized to prosecute and judge the ministers for offenses committed in the
exercise of their functions.
AFP revealed in mid-January that Nathalie Elimas was the subject of an administrative investigation by the IGESR after internal reports of "
dysfunctions
” within his firm relating “
to labor relations
”.
"Slanderous denunciation"
Several sources had told AFP that the Secretary of State was accused of acts of "
harassment
", even "
abuse
", on collaborators.
All preferred to remain anonymous.
At least three sources had also pointed out that the employment within the cabinet of a very close friend of Nathalie Elimas, described by one of these sources as “
untouchable
”, would be one of the aspects of this administrative investigation.
Nathalie Elimas said two days later "
victim of a very violent attack
".
In mid-February, an internal pre-report was submitted to Jean Castex.
According to two sources interviewed by AFP, the testimonies targeting Nathalie Elimas were "
concordant
",
and “
overwhelming
”.
The Élysée had announced on March 5 that it was leaving the government.
A week later, Nathalie Elimas announced to AFP that she had filed a complaint for "
slanderous denunciation
".
"
Given the importance of this case, I decided to defend myself and take a first step, by filing a complaint for slanderous denunciation
," she said.
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“
For several weeks now, I have been smeared and slandered in the media, which has taken up accusations seriously undermining my honor and my dignity
”, she had justified.
Aged 48, Nathalie Elimas entered the government in July 2020 after being elected in 2017 as a MoDem deputy (presidential majority) for Val-d'Oise.
