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Former French economy minister beaten and robbed at Paris home

A former French economy minister, Thierry Breton, was robbed and beaten in his Paris home along with his wife and live-in chauffeur, sources close to the police investigation told AFP on Tuesday.

Published: 24 July 2019 08:14 CEST

Former French economy minister beaten and robbed at Paris home

Photo: AFP

Two men wearing ski-masks and gloves and wielding handguns entered the property late on Saturday night through an unlocked window, waking the couple who were threatened and hit, two sources said, confirming a report first given by the newspaper Le Parisien.

The intruders then found the chauffeur, and locked all three victims in a bathroom before making off with what one of the sources said was a diamond bracelet worth €50,000 and several hundred euros in cash.

Breton, who was minister 2005-2007 and has been CEO of major French IT company Atos since 2009, suffered a wound to his head while his wife had a wrist hurt. Neither required hospitalisation.

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French parliament to investigate sexual abuse in cinema

The Assemblée nationale unanimously agreed to set up the commission demanded by actor Judith Godreche in a speech to the upper house, the Senate, in February.

The 52-year-old actor and director has become a key figure in France’s MeToo movement since accusing directors Benoit Jacquot and Jacques Doillon of sexually assaulting her when she was a teenager. Both have denied the allegations.

All 52 lawmakers present for the vote on Thursday approved the creation of the commission, watched by Godreche, who was present in the public gallery in the chamber.

“It’s time to stop laying out the red carpet for abusers,” said Greens lawmaker Francesca Pasquini.

The new commission is to look into “the condition of minors in the various sectors of cinema, television, theatre, fashion and advertising”, as well as that of adults working in them, it said.

On the basis of Godreche’s proposal, a parliamentary commission on culture decided to extend the scope of the inquiry to also include other cultural sectors.

It is to “identify the mechanisms and failings that allow these potential abuses and violences”, “establish responsibilities” and make recommendations.

The parliament vote comes a day after actor Isild Le Besco, 41, said in an autobiography she was also raped by Jacquot during a relationship that started when she was 16, but was not ready to press charges.

Godreche, by contrast, has filed a legal complaint against the prominent arthouse director, over alleged abuse that occurred during a relationship that began when she was 14 and he was 25 years her senior.

She has also formally accused Doillon of abusing her as a 15-year-old actress in a film he directed.

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