French far-right leader, Marine Le Pen was placed under formal investigation on Friday as part of a probe into the alleged misuse of European Union funds to pay parliamentary assistants.
Le Pen, who is being investigated for breach of trust, has previously denied any wrongdoing in a case that she has said is politically motivated.
The European Parliament believes the money went to National Front employees working for the party in France rather than those working for the party’s lawmakers in Brussels. Last February, Le Pen’s chief-of-staff Catherine Griset was placed under formal investigation by a financial court, while her longtime bodyguard Thierry Legier was questioned.
The formal investigation of Le Pen comes less than two weeks after she won a seat in the French National Assembly. She is no longer a member of the European Parliament.
