Judicial troubles at the top of French politics. Alexis Kohler, general secretary of the Elysee and right-hand man of President Emmanuel Macron, is officially under investigation by the national prosecutor for corruption.
The story stems from a complaint by the Anticor association, which claims that there is a conflict of interest between Kohler's institutional role and his family ties with the Italian-Swiss shipowner MSC, founded and managed by cousins of Kohler's mother. Kohler and important customer of Stx France.
In particular, according to the association, the problem is that Kohler, alongside Macron since he was elected in May 2017, has been on the board of directors of Stx France since 2010 as a state representative.
The Elysium believes that the complaint is based on press reports that “contain numerous and serious factual errors”, given that Kohler “always kept his superiors informed about the personal ties he had with the MSC group. He has therefore always kept on the sidelines of every discussion and every decision related to this company ”.
The French Presidency has "taken note" of the complaint filed by Anticor for embezzlement of interests, trading of influences and passive corruption and added that "Alexis Kohler will provide the Public Prosecutor's Office with all the documents demonstrating his law-abiding conduct throughout the process of his professional career.
According to the Elysée, in fact, "the accusations are totally unfounded and were launched against Kohler solely for his role".
