Summary

A French court found far-right leader Marine Le Pen guilty of embezzling over €3 million in EU funds, potentially ending her 2027 presidential bid.

The judge ruled Le Pen and 24 others misused European Parliament funds between 2004 and 2016 to pay National Rally party staff, calling it a deliberate scheme, not an error.

Prosecutors had sought five years’ prison and a public office ban. Even with an appeal, a provisional execution could bar her candidacy.

  • kn0wmad1c@programming.dev
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    4 months ago

    could” end it.

    Are we cooked as a species? Embezzlement is a pretty big crime. She should be going to jail and it should most definitely end her political aspirations

  • PumpkinSkink@lemmy.world
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    4 months ago

    If she’s banned from running it will be the first instance of a western liberal country reacting appropriately to the resurgence of fascism. Good on France.

  • Hikuro-93@lemmy.ca
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    4 months ago

    The worst thing in this statement is “could” - “could end her career”.

    A system that doesn’t automatically provide real consequences and makes an example of the criminal is a corrupt system in itself. There shouldn’t even be a ‘could’ in a so-called ‘fair and free system’.

    And this isn’t just France, by far. Cheers from the Banana Republic known as Portugal, quite the paradise for corrupt politicians.

  • khannie@lemmy.world
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    4 months ago

    Could someone tell me how she was able to walk out of the court having been sentenced to prison?

    • cynar@lemmy.world
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      4 months ago

      The prison sentence kicks in after appeals have been made. 2 years, plus 2 suspended.

      It’s also not unknown/uncommon for people to be let free for a few days. It lets them put their affairs in order, before serving their time. It tends to be applied to those with a very low flight risk however, with significant affairs, so mainly the rich.

    • shalafi@lemmy.world
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      4 months ago

      Pretty common deal if the conviction wasn’t for violence. Meth head and his wife down the road were sentenced and had a month or two to gut their rental trailer and sell the parts off. LOL, they fucking sold the floorboards. Got some good gardening stuff off him though!

  • Hemingways_Shotgun@lemmy.ca
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    4 months ago

    A French court found far-right leader Marine Le Pen guilty of embezzling over €3 million in EU funds, potentially ending her 2027 presidential bid.

    “pfffft…amateur.” (Donald Trump, probably)

  • Valmond@lemmy.world
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    4 months ago

    Womp womp!

    And kremlin deplores frances lack of democracy, so I sure think we’re on the right track!

    Just waiting for the ineligibility time…