Three officers from the Somme Fire and Rescue Service (SDIS) have just been placed under formal investigation by the investigating judge in charge of the case. The former director, Colonel Marc Dehédin, a senior officer, and his former partner, a professional firefighter, were questioned last week by investigators from the Amiens criminal investigation department whilst in police custody, according to our colleagues at the
Courrier Picard.
The courts are investigating whether the firefighter may have received illegal preferential treatment in connection with an accident that occurred whilst on duty.
€150,000: is that too generous a compensation payment?
On the night of 10–11 July 2010, the 40-year-old firefighter was injured after the fire engine collided with a car in Amiens. The firefighter, who was a volunteer at the time, was injured. Following several medical assessments, this self-employed firefighter was declared unfit to resume his duties.
According to information from our colleagues at the
Courrier Picard, the SDIS did not wait for the car driver’s insurance company to pay compensation to this firefighter, who later became a professional firefighter. It paid him around 150,000 euros as an advance against his claim for damages and daily allowances, which is reportedly unlawful, and this compensation is said to have been approximately 25,000 euros too generous. The SDIS is said to have been made aware of the illegality of the practice but to have disregarded it.
At the civil proceedings hearing before the criminal court, the SDIS joined the case as a civil party to recover from the insurance company the money paid to the firefighter. The insurance company eventually filed a complaint for fraud in court proceedings and insurance fraud.
“There is no criminal offence”
The lawyer representing the firefighter and the manager, Mr Stéphane Diboundje, disputes the allegations: his client never asked for preferential treatment, and his ex-partner “was at no point involved in the compensation process”. “In this case, there is no criminal offence.
It is based solely on errors, and in no way on any intention to misappropriate funds. Fundamentally, it is simply a matter of a misinterpretation of a text”, comments Ms Giuseppina Marras, who is defending a member of the SDIS legal department. The investigation is ongoing.
