French police raid Paris 2024 organizing committee office, spokesman says

Paris (CNN) — French police raided the offices of the Paris 2024 organizing committee in France’s capital Tuesday morning, a committee spokesperson confirmed to CNN.

Paris 2024 spokersperson Jonathan Firpo told CNN that a “police search is currently underway at the headquarters of the Organising Committee.”

“Paris 2024 is cooperating fully with the investigators to facilitate their investigations,” Firpo said.

According to an internal email sent to committee employees seen by CNN affiliate BFMTV, French financial police are leading the search.

The raids were tied to two “preliminary investigations” into financial improprieties with contracts and public funds, the French National Financial Prosecutor’s Office confirmed to CNN.

“Several” sites were raided by police, including the Paris 2024 offices and the headquarters of SOLIDEO, the public body responsible for much of the construction and infrastructure around the Paris 2024 games, the financial prosecutor’s office said.

One of the preliminary investigations was opened in 2017 by a French police anti-corruption unit into “illegal conflict of interests, embezzlement of public funds, favouritism and concealment of favouritism targeting several contracts” awarded by the Paris 2024 committee.

The second preliminary investigation was opened in 2022 by a second specialized French police financial unit, examining the charges of “illegal conflict of interest, favouritism and concealment of favouritism relating to several contracts” awarded by the Paris 2024 Committee and SOLIDEO. This followed an inspection by the French anti-corruption agency, the financial prosecutor’s office said.

Next year’s Olympic Games are set to start on July 26 and run until August 11. The Paralympic Games will then take place from August 28 until September 8.