Paris prosecutor opens probe into Le Pen’s 2022 campaign financing

PARIS: The Paris prosecutor’s office said on Tuesday it had launched a preliminary probe into suspicions of illegal financing of far right National Rally (RN) leader Marine Le Pen’s campaign for the 2022 presidential race, which she lost to Emmanuel Macron.
The investigation, which was opened on July 2, follows a 2023 report by the National Commission on Campaign Accounts and Political Financing (CNCCFP), which scrutinizes candidates’ election expenses and funding, the prosecutor’s office said. It will look into allegations of embezzlement, forgery, fraud, and that a candidate on an electoral campaign accepted a loan.
Le Pen and her party have previously denied wrongdoing in connection with campaign financing. The National Rally could not be immediately reached for comment.