BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 29. French authorities have launched a high-profile investigation into a suspected money laundering scheme involving Russian billionaire Suleiman Kerimov, raising questions about potential ties to President Emmanuel Macron’s family, Trend reports.
On March 27, French investigators raided the Ministry of Economy and Finance as part of a judicial probe into real estate transactions allegedly used to launder Russian funds. The case centers on luxury villas on the French Riviera, worth over 38 million euros, which were reportedly registered under false names to obscure the real owner—Kerimov, a sanctioned oligarch with close ties to the Kremlin.
Moreover, tax lawyer Frédéric Moréas has also been named in the judicial investigation into the financial dealings of oligarch Suleyman Kerimov. He has been working with Tiphaine Auzière, Brigitte Macron’s daughter, since 2017. It was President Emmanuel Macron himself who introduced them.
Moréas and Macron go way back—he personally advised Macron when he was considering launching a startup.
A key focus of the probe is a 2019 tax agreement between Kerimov and French authorities. Investigators suspect that negotiations surrounding this deal may have involved undue influence, with reports suggesting a potential connection to Macron’s inner circle.
Kerimov has faced scrutiny in France since 2014 for suspicious financial activities, including the underreported purchase of a 127 million euro villa in Antibes. His 2017 arrest in Nice sparked diplomatic tensions with Moscow, but his indictment was later overturned.
With fresh evidence emerging, French prosecutors are now revisiting the case, and political observers are closely watching whether the investigation could implicate high-level officials or members of Macron’s family.