The former mayor of Levallois-Perret, Patrick Balkani, was quietly released early Friday from prison, according to his entourage, for several months of tax evasion in Fleury-Mérogis (Essonne).
Patrick Balkani, accompanied by his wife, Isabelle Balkani, talked to journalists from his residence in Giverny. He said to himself.relievedafter several months in solitary confinement without seeing any other inmates. “The prison is very hard, I was isolated, I did not meet the prisoner for six months– said the former mayor BFM TV . Patrick Balkani thanked the prison staff and guardians who followed him during his detention.They were remarkable“.
“This decision is illegal under the law.”
The lanky, long-haired former mayor is back in his prison, which he describes as “hell“. “It’s hell to be there because there’s screaming everywhere. It’s very tiring, we can’t sleep because he screams and kicks until 2 am. I can tell you it’s hard for a man my age.” “I am happy to come to rest, find my wife, find my dogs and my homeshe added alongside Isabelle Balkani, clearly delighted to have found her husband. “Released is the wrong word and I can’t think of another one; I can’t find the word. When happiness is so intense, we cannot qualify it“, he added, was also questioned in front of the gate of the mansion.
The former elected official’s release from jail was kept under wraps until he decided to speak to the press who were waiting for him at his home in Giverny, where he arrived shortly before 9:30 a.m. On Thursday, the Paris Court of Appeal granted Patrick Balkani’s request to adjust his sentence. The judges took notethe efforts of the convict to finally initiate the payment of the substantial sums due to the State Treasury from February 2022;“We read in the decision.
this “awareness“, relates to “the amount of punishment he has now served” and to “extremely low risk of recurrenceThe sentencing chamber was forced to grant his request. “This decision is legally unreasonable, because there is no justification for the detention of a 73-year-old man who has already served two-thirds of his sentence.His lawyers, Robin Binsard and Romain Dieudonné, assured AFP. According to them, Patrick Balkani will return to his home in Giverny, Eur.
Convicted of tax evasion
The former Baron de Aux de Seine and his wife, Isabel Balkani, were found guilty of tax evasion between 2009 and 2015 at first instance and later on appeal. More specifically, they are accused of not paying wealth tax from 2010 to 2010. in 2014 to pay a lower amount in 2015, and to pay largely understated income tax from 2009 to 2014. Patrick Balkany was jailed in 2019 for his conviction, then released in February 2020 for health reasons, then sentenced to an Electronic Bracelet in March 2021. He was jailed again in February for failing to comply with obligations to wear his electronic bracelet.
His wife, whose electronic bracelet was also revoked, was hospitalized after what her husband said was a suicide attempt in February. He returned to his home on June 4, awaiting a possible arraignment. In addition to this conviction for tax evasion, Patrick Balkani and Isabelle Balkani were also finally convicted in June 2021 of money laundering and illegal interest charges for tax evasion. Only the question of the amount of punishment remains in the process, the new trial is scheduled for next October.
Source: Le Figaro
