French businessman questioned in Fillon 'fake work' inquiry

French police on Monday questioned a businessman close to presidential candidate Francois Fillon as part of an investigation into allegations of fake work by Fillon's wife, a source said, as his campaign plunged deeper into uncertainty.

Fillon, the poll favourite to win the two-round April-May election, has said he would abandon his presidential bid if placed under formal criminal investigation. 

A source close to the case said businessman Marc Ladreit de Lacharriere was questioned because his Fimalac holding company owns the literary review La Revue des Deux Mondes, one of Penelope Fillon's employers during a period in which the Canard Enchaine newspaper says she was paid hundreds of thousands of euros for work she did not do.

Fillon, a conservative former prime minister, has said her work, which also included being an assistant to him, was real, and says he is the victim of a smear campaign.

A Fimalac spokeswoman declined to comment on the questioning of Ladreit de Lacharriere. There was no immediate response to an attempt to reach him by email.

An investigation was launched last week into the affair, which has knocked Fillon's presidential campaign off course and dented the wholesome image the devout Catholic has cultivated.

An Internet petition saying "Mme Fillon give us back the 500,000 euros" said on Monday afternoon 208,000 people had signed so far.

If police find fake work allegations stand up, prosecutors can seek a formal inquiry by an investigating magistrate, which would take months to reach a conclusion.

However, prosecutors could also leapfrog that step and go directly to trial, the source close to the case said.

Should Fillon drop his presidential bid, time is running out for the conservative Republicans party to choose another candidate.

The party only has about two weeks to organise a new primary before it would be too late, as a March 22 deadline approaches for all candidates to officially register for the election, Anne Levade, who oversaw the party's primary in November, told Le Monde newspaper at the weekend.

Source :Times Of Oman