EU seeks recovery of funds from French candidate Le Pen: Report
Al JazeeraOct 29, 2021
The Facts
A European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) report has accused Marine Le Pen and several of her party members of embezzling about €620k while serving as members of the European Parliament.
The public prosecution in Paris reportedly received the report on Mar. 11 and is examining it. However, the investigative news site Mediapart published parts of it on Sat.
The Spin
Left narrative
Le Pen has already been accused of embezzlement, and it's quite clear that she views EU institutions with utter contempt - especially considering her Eurosceptic political platform. It was doubtful that she would win before this scandal, and this is good news for Macron.
Right narrative
This report is clearly a political stunt by the EU to swing France's election toward the Europe-friendly Macron. Recent polls gave Le Pen a strong chance of beating the current French President, so the EU had to intervene to save him.
