Médiapart and BFM TV have just lifted the veil on a case dating back to November 2022 involving a brigadier in the DGSI. As early as 2009, this agent, who is now 52 years old, allegedly used funds allocated for the remuneration of his sources, essential to his intelligence missions, for personal purposes.
Over the course of seven years, he is accused of embezzling at least €92,000 intended to finance his professional activities. These funds were used, among other things, to pay hackers hired to penetrate specific networks, including jihadist networks. A source involved in these operations shared his experience, revealing the scale of the embezzlement:
"I used to receive small sums of up to €2,000. But then I realised when I was questioned by the Inspectorate General of Internal Security (IGSI), the police force of the DGSI, that he had kept a large part of the money intended for me".
Former colleagues of the brigadier suggest that the amount embezzled exceeds one million euros from public funds, although the investigation has not been able to verify this because of the obfuscation methods (a process aimed at transforming a computer code sufficiently to make it unreadable) employed by the individual. The agent had opened a bank account under a fictitious identity thanks to false identity documents accessible via his position at the DGSI, an organisation responsible for cyber defence, counter-terrorism and espionage. These privileges provided him with additional resources, facilitating his fraudulent activities.
The Brigadier didn't just embezzle funds; with the advent of cryptocurrencies, he was able to add value to them. Recognised as an expert in this field, he invested in mining rigs to extract bitcoins and also started trading. These activities linked to cryptocurrencies are said to have enabled him to amass more than €1 million. It should be noted that during the early years of Bitcoin, individual mining remained economically viable. To convert his Bitcoins into euros, the man travelled incognito to an Eastern European country. The discovery of this fraud was the DGSI's responsibility, thanks to its internal controls, leading to the agent being suspended and sentenced in November 2022 to three years' imprisonment, including six months' imprisonment, and a fine of €1,000, in addition to the seizure of a car and a ban on working as a police officer, after nearly two decades with the DGSI.
Contacted by Médiapart, the man, who is not very forthcoming, believes that the case has already been dealt with:
"I do not wish to revisit] a case that has been definitively judged and is therefore closed. [Moreover, I can neither deny nor confirm your information about my past functions because of their classified nature, which prevents me from referring to them".
The case is particularly embarrassing for the DGSI, which explains why it was not disclosed, and why the conviction took place discreetly in 2022. Today, the convicted man is free and working as a "sole trader".
Source : Médiapart
