The mayor of Béziers Robert Ménard, once close to Marine Le Pen and Eric Zemmour, refused Friday to celebrate the marriage of an Algerian in an irregular situation and his French companion, suspecting a "white" marriage, despite the endorsement parquet.
"The wedding did not take place, I objected to it", declared to Agence France-Presse Mr. Ménard, while the couple had presented themselves at the end of the morning as planned at the town hall of this city of Hérault.
After waiting an hour and being told by Mr. Ménard that the wedding would not take place, the 23-year-old man, who is subject to an obligation to leave French territory (OQTF), and his 29-year-old companion then went to the police station to file a complaint against the mayor.
The public prosecutor of Béziers, Raphaël Balland, had however specified in a press release Thursday evening that the prosecution had given its agreement to this union, after having examined the separate hearings of the two spouses carried out by the civil registrar of the municipality and not having detected any inconsistencies.
Marriage, a "fundamental right"
The prosecution had informed the town hall on June 16 that it had decided "not to postpone the marriage", considering that "there were not enough serious indications allowing it to presume the absence of marital consent". In his press release, Mr. Balland also recalled that "marriage is a fundamental right".
The Béziers prosecutor's office, however, opened a preliminary investigation on June 26, in order to "fully ensure the legality of this marriage", Mr. Balland also specified Thursday in his press release. The purpose of this is to verify whether this marriage is not contracted "for the sole purpose of obtaining, or obtaining, a residence permit or the benefit of protection against expulsion, or for the sole purpose of 'to acquire or cause to be acquired French nationality'.
It was only at the end of this investigation, entrusted to the interdepartmental directorate of the border police (Didpaf) of Sète, that the prosecution could assess whether or not it was a sham marriage and, if necessary, initiate criminal proceedings before the criminal court against the couple and go to court to have the marriage annulled.
