France's former spy chief convicted over dealings with Europe's richest man
The former chief of France's internal spy agency has been convicted of using public resources and his position of power to serve the private interests of Europe's richest man, Bernard Arnault, the LVMH chief executive.
On Friday, the Paris criminal court sentenced Bernard Squarcini, the former head of France's central directorate of internal intelligence, to four years in prison, two of which were suspended, and a €200,000 (£168,000) fine.
He was tried on charges ranging from passive influence peddling, embezzlement of public funds, compromising national defence secrets and forgery of public documents.
Squarcini's sentencing ended a lengthy and complex trial that spanned his career as France's former spy chief between 2008-2012, and then as a private consultant between 2013-2016, whose main client was French luxury goods powerhouse LVMH.
While working as head of intelligence, Squarcini assigned French agents to conduct surveillance operations and track down a blackmailer who was targeting Mr Arnault, in what the prosecution said was a flagrant and inappropriate misuse of public funds and resources.
Agents were largely kept in the dark about the identity of the businessman they were protecting, and were dispatched to Paris and Aix-en-Provence.
Instructions were given orally, and pains were taken not to leave a paper trail, according to testimonies given by agents in court documents obtained by Radio France.
'I asked why the business leader did not file a complaint with the judicial police, pointing out to him that this was not part of our anti-terrorist missions,' one of the agents told investigators.
'He told me that it was none of my business and that the mission came from very, very high up. I understood that it came from above Bernard Squarcini.'
The blackmailer, Mr Arnault's former bodyguard, claimed to have photos of the billionaire and his purported mistress. Mr Arnault claims not to have known about the surveillance operation and insists that it was requested by his chief adviser at the time, Pierre Gode, who died in 2018.
After being forced out of the spy agency in 2012, Squarcini then founded his own private consultancy company, Kyrnos Conseil, where he billed LVMH €2.2 million (£1.85 million) in services.
One of the biggest missions for LVMH was mounting an elaborate three-year surveillance operation between 2013-2016 against then journalist Francois Ruffin, who headed Fakir, an independent newspaper.
Mr Ruffin, now a politician, was also working on a documentary 'Thanks boss!', a David and Goliath-type story in which he took up the plight of a French couple left unemployed and riddled with debt after LVMH relocated their Kenzo factory from France to Poland.
As part of the film, Mr Ruffin was also planning to challenge Mr Arnault and disrupt an LVMH shareholder meeting.
Mr Arnault claims that he was unaware of the surveillance mission against Mr Ruffin and that it was a request made from Mr Gode.
Proceedings against LVMH were dropped in 2021, after the group agreed to pay a €10 million (£8.4 million) settlement to close the criminal probe.
Following the sentencing, Mr Ruffin criticised Mr Arnault, accusing the billionaire of using his money and power to evade justice.
'The judgement states that it was at the request of LVMH, that it was in the interests of LVMH, that it was at the instigation of LVMH.
'It is now clear that the world's leading luxury group, with its perfumes and fine suits, has its feet in the mud and for years has been guilty of invading privacy and violating freedom of expression.'
Squarcini plans to appeal the conviction.
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