Paris, Thursday
AN appeals court ruled today that the chairman of France's SNCF state railway must stay in detention during a corruption probe because of pressure on witnesses, opening the way for the Government to replace him.
Transport Minister Bernard Pons said this week he would replace rail chief Loic Le Floch-Prigent if the court kept him in custody during the investigation into alleged fraud while he was head of the Elf Aquitaine oil giant.
Investigating magistrate Eva Joly placed Le Floch-Prigent in detention on July 5 on suspicion of abuse of corporate funds, receiving the proceeds of fraud, and issuing false information and accounts.
It was the first time the head of a public company has been incarcerated in a wave of corruption and political funding investigations in France.
The case concerns the circumstances in which Elf invested nearly 800m francs (#100m) into the collapsing Bidermann textile group in 1992.-Reuter
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