“If the facts are true, it’s all a mess”, reacts Friday April 14 on franceinfo Me Virginie Le Roy, lawyer for the family of Samuel Paty, after new revelations concerning the Marianne Fund. Among the 17 associations which have benefited from subsidies from this fund, launched by Marlène Schiappa after the death of the teacher, it is now two associations, according to franceinfo confirming information from Mediapart, which are suspected of having used this envelope to d ends, in particular political ones, than the fight against separatism.
“To use the money intended to fight against this scourge is to flout the memory of Samuel Paty”denounces Virginie Le Roy. “It is an insult to his memory but also to that of the victims of terrorism and their families”continues the lawyer, according to whom “Samuel Paty’s family had already been very shocked by the first revelations” of the joint survey by France 2 and the weekly Marianne at the end of March. Virginie Le Roy wants a judicial inquiry to be opened. “These are facts that can be qualified as embezzlement of public funds”declares the lawyer, while these suspicions are now the subject of an investigation by the General Inspectorate of Administration and a report to the Paris Public Prosecutor’s Office.
“Superficial” answers from Sonia Backès and Marlène Schiappa
She claims to have “interrogates” Marlène Schiappa who had launched this fund when she was Minister Delegate for Citizenship, as well as her successor Sonia Backès. “I had superficial answers to make sure that all the transparency will be done, but we must not wait for the scandal to come out for that”says the lawyer. “What we expect, we, on the side of Samuel Paty’s family, are not the usual answers, to say that we have answered, but real answers, an act of transparency, to know what ‘we made these funds’summarizes Virginie Le Roy. “I would like to have the criteria, to know which associations applied and on what criteria the associations were selected”.
The lawyer also calls “with all his wishes” the holding of a parliamentary inquiry as requested Thursday, April 13 by RN deputies. Me Virginie Le Roy judges the approach “essestial” For “shed light on very serious facts”. She also invites parliamentarians to “overcome political divisions”. “It is no longer a question of political rivalry, it is a question of restoring our institutions in the dignity that is expected of them”concludes the lawyer.