Marine Le Pen claims to have “no feeling of having committed the slightest crime” on the primary day of the listening to | EUROtoday

Marine Le Pen assured Tuesday January 13 that she had not “the feeling of having committed the slightest crime”throughout his first speech at his enchantment trial in Paris, insisting on his lack of intentionality “if indeed a fault has been committed”.

“ [Je n’ai] no feeling of having committed the slightest crime when in 2004, 2009, 2014 we hired our assistants”declared the chief of the French far proper, shortly earlier than 5:30 p.m., throughout a primary speech after a studying of greater than two hours of the file by the president of the courtroom of enchantment.

With a novel components, “if indeed a fault has been committed”to which she had till then refused, Marine Le Pen instantly blamed the European Parliament, which, based on her, “did not play this warning role as it should have” do it.

According to her, the European establishment “was aware of the overall elements constituting these contracts” disputed parliamentary assistants, paid by envelopes paid by the Parliament of Strasbourg, however suspected of getting labored solely for the advantage of the National Front, which grew to become the National Rally.

“We didn’t hide anything”

“We didn’t hide anything”insisted once more the one who’s at stake in her political future: in first occasion, she was sentenced to 5 years of instant ineligibility, stopping her from being a candidate for the 2027 presidential election. “I hope to be able to be heard by the court of appeal”she declared within the morning, earlier than a gathering of her parliamentary group within the National Assembly, saying she “in a state of mind of hope, as it were…”.

The mayor of Perpignan, Louis Aliot, the RN deputy Julien Odoul, the MEP Nicolas Bay and Bruno Gollnisch are additionally as soon as once more on the dock. Called to the stand in flip, all maintained, like their chief, that that they had no intention of committing against the law. “I have the feeling of having been neither understood nor fully heard in the explanations”declared Louis Aliot to the magistrates of the courtroom of enchantment.

The lawyer for the European Parliament, who joined as a civil social gathering, Patrick Maisonneuve, stated ” notice “ L’” evolution “ of the technique of Marine Le Pen and her co-defendants, declaring “a little surprised by this progression, when we experienced, notably [l’instruction] and the first hearing, where there was a brutal dispute, regarding the accusation of embezzlement of public funds”.

The listening to, which is being held underneath the woodwork of the primary room of the Paris courthouse, on the Île de la Cité, was suspended round 5:40 p.m. It will resume Wednesday morning and is scheduled to final till February 11.

A month of trial

Justice accuses Marine Le Pen, the National Rally (then referred to as National Front) and ten different defendants of getting paid between 2004 and 2016 workers of the social gathering, which was then experiencing monetary difficulties resulting from poor electoral outcomes, with cash from the European Parliament. Of the 25 convicted at first occasion, solely half appealed.

The three-time unsuccessful candidate for the Elysée – who could possibly be changed by Jordan Bardella as RN candidate if her ineligibility had been to be confirmed on enchantment – was sentenced for embezzlement of public funds on March 31, 2025 by the Paris Criminal Court to 4 years’ imprisonment, two of which had been underneath an digital bracelet, a positive of 100,000 euros and, subsequently, 5 years of ineligibility with provisional execution.

At first occasion, the judges established the financial lack of the Parliament of Strasbourg at 3.2 million euros, as soon as deducted 1.1 million euros of funds unduly paid however already reimbursed by a number of the defendants.