Five years in prison and a committal warrant were requested on Monday against an administrative assistant from the city of Marseille tried for a vast corruption case relating to the allocation of social housing, of which she was allegedly
“the network head”
.
The prosecutor also requested a fine of 50,000 euros and,
“because she failed for four years to fulfill all the duties of a public official”
, he requested a definitive ban from exercising any public function.
Working in the housing department of the town hall of the 2nd and 3rd arrondissements of Marseille, Rosina Livolsi, 52, tried since February 19 alongside thirteen accomplices and intermediaries, admitted to having taken bribes from applicants for social housing.
She demanded from them between 1000 and 2000 euros to put a case on top of the pile, the court having assessed her earnings at a total of around 40,000 euros between 2016 and 2019.
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Everyday corruption
“This is low-intensity corruption but we should not confuse low intensity with low seriousness
,” noted prosecutor Mathieu Vernaudon who called on the court for
“a strong and clear response against these illegal and unacceptable practices, in Marseille as elsewhere
.
“This corruption of everyday life (...) has a very profound impact on social bonds
,” he insisted.
Having entered as a civil servant on November 5, 1997 at Marseille town hall, the woman who still claims the nickname
“Mother Teresa of the 2nd arrondissement”
explained that she had been caught
“in a spiral”
, having been the subject of over-indebtedness procedures since 2010.
Calling her
“the head of the network and the heart of the system”
, the prosecutor pointed out her
“great ability to manipulate people”
.
On the first day of her trial, she declared that she had
“always had a lot of empathy for people”
.
The remarks offended the prosecutor who described her as
"the organizer of a system aimed at exploiting the precariousness of housing seekers, in a city where the impoverished population is very significant, in a city marked by situations of unsanitary housing and marked by the
tragedy of rue d'Aubagne
"
, when the collapse of two buildings left eight dead in November 2018.
Read alsoMarseille: the collapse of the rue de Tivoli building awakens the memory of the tragedy of rue d'Aubagne
The town hall demands firmness from the judge
Once removed from office in 2018, due to growing suspicions, Rosina Livolsi continued to monetize promises of housing.
Sentences ranging from one year in prison to two years, including one year, and fines of 5,000 to 20,000 euros were requested against his intermediaries and touts.
The prosecuting magistrate also requested the sentencing of Rosina Livolsi's son and daughter-in-law to 30 months in prison, including one year to be served under an electronic bracelet, and a fine of 25,000 euros each. he said he wanted to ensure a comfortable standard of living.
Representing the city of Marseille, civil party, Me Benjamin Liautaud also called on the court to be
“a lot of firmness”
, condemning the comments reiterated by the defendants according to which
“in Marseille, this is how it happens.”
The court will listen to the arguments of the defense lawyers until Wednesday before likely deliberating its judgment.