Michel Sleiman’s Falsified Documents

Hassan Olleiq - al-Akhbar newspaper

It all began in 2005, when the General Security Directorate received a correspondence from the French security authorities, hereby asking about a group of Lebanese French records indicated they had obtained French passports illegally.

The General Security Chief at the time, General Jamil Sayyed, held a series of contacts with the French embassy in Beirut. He then met with French official, diplomats, and security chiefs, noting that the three names belong to the army commander General Michel Sleiman, the Director of his office General Wafic Jizini, and their friend Colonel Reda El-Moussaoui.

Sayyed and French officials agreed to "contain the scandal because it tampers negatively with the image of the Lebanese army." Sayyed even proposed to communicate with the three generals and recuperate the passports to close the dossier "on the basis of the absence of the criminal intention as they did not use the passports." The French accepted the deal of Sayyed, who made sure all evidences and traces related to the case disappeared from the General Security agency's records, before he resigned and then detained as ordered by the international investigation committee into the killing of Rafic Hariri. However, removing the case's trace from Lebanon did mean from France equally.

In June 2006, the Lebanese judiciary received a warrant from the French competent court, whereby the investigative judge of Pontoise commune in France requested to interrogate those who had obtained the French passports, including Sleiman, Jizini, Moussaoui, and their families.

The news spread among the Lebanese political milieus, but was kept behind closed doors. Everybody knew about it but nobody spoke of it. In November 2007, the story was more known as it figured in the French Le Point and Le Figaro. Still, connivance between politicians and mediamen managed to keep the affair in the dark. In February 2013, al-Akhbar newspaper published the story quoting the two French publications and one cable of the US embassy in Beirut, posted on whistleblowing WikiLeaks. In the cable, former French ambassador to Lebanon, Bernard Aimée, says: "[Michel] Sleiman has legal problems in France due to his obtaining French passports for himself and his family through falsified documents." He adds: "Even if I approve on Sleiman's visa to go to France, I cannot guarantee that he will not be arrested upon his arrival."

Of course, the publication was ignored. The news website, always keen and keeping tabs on every graphic detail, dealt with the scandal as if it didn't happen. And so did most of TV channels, in matter of a scandal that could have shaken the throne of any illegitimate president elect, unless in the banana republics like the one we live in.

Informed sources close to political, security, and judicial connections to the case, say that the French arrest warrant against Sleiman was still effective until after his election as the head of the Lebanese state and that if things weren't arranged before his first visit to Paris after he moved to Baabda, the scandal would have wide spread: a president of a republic being arrested in a foreign country or banned from entering it because he had acquired a fake passport!
When al-Akhbar again published the story, sides close to the president dashed to flatly deny and belly it.
Today, al-Akhbar publishes the content of a document that proves the correctness of what has been mentioned before. It is the content of the French warrant dispatched by the French investigative judge to the Lebanese judiciary via the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
In light on the scandal, we hope that Michel Sleiman would speak frankly to the public opinion. In case it is proven true, it is certainly an offense for all the Lebanese, and the perpetrator must apologize, nay resign, not just from his post, but also from the political life.

The Lebanese Republic

The Premiership

Number of the issue: 40/s

Number of registrations

Beirut, 16/6/2006

Topic: referral of two individuals before the State Prosecution of Cassation

Reference: letter by the French Foreign Minister number 461 CH on 17/3/2006
Kindly find hereby annexed the letter of the French Foreign Minister relevant to mandating the Lebanese judiciary to investigate into the case of Rachida Lebcir and Abdelkani Betka

To refer it, with the annexations, to the competent court
Cabinet Secretary General
Souheil al-Bouji

Ministry of Justice
20/6/2006
Number 3774/3
State Prosecution of Cassation
Director General of the Ministry of Justice
Judge Omar al-Natour
22/6/2006

****
Court of Appeal in Versailles
Grand Instance Court
In Pontoise
Office of the investigative judge
Mr. Fabrice Naudé
International judicial prosecution
Number of the prosecution: 0506000817
Number of the investigation: 18/05/8
(...)
We, Mr. Fabrice Naudé, the investigative judge before the Grand Instance Court in Pontoise city to investigate into the aforementioned, in addition to the following charges:
Equivocation,
Falsification of personal documents and use of fake documents,
Falsification of administrative documents and use of fake documents,
Obtaining administrative documents illegally,
As the acts committed in Cergy-Pontoise during the years 2003, 2004, and 2005, on national soil, and which are not subject to the law of limitations
Sanctions are provisioned in articles 321-1, 321-3, 321-4, 321-9, 321-10, 441-1, 441-2, 441-6, 441-9, 411-10, and 411-11 of the Penal Code.
Complementary convocation on 13/04/05
Falsification of administrative documents and use of falsified administrative documents,
Obtaining administrative documents illegally,
Possession of falsified administrative documents,
Fraud and scam,
Deception to obtain allocations earmarked to [the French social welfare] RMI,
Deception to obtain shares earmarked to social welfare allocations
Acts and related sanctions provisioned in articles 313-1, 313-3, 313-7, 313-8, 441-3, 441-5, 441-6, 441-9, 441-10, and 441-11 of the Penal Code and articles L377-1, L377-5, L554-1, and L554-3 of the Social Security Law, and article L262-46 of the Social Work and Households Code.
Supplementary convocation on 19/07/05
Hiding falsified administrative documents
Use of falsified administrative documents
Deception to obtain allocations earmarked to [the French social welfare] RMI,
Deception to obtain shares earmarked to social welfare allocations
Acts and related sanctions provisioned in articles 313-1, 313-3, 313-7, 313-8, 441-3, 441-5, 441-6, 441-9, 441-10, and 441-11 of the Penal Code and articles L377-1, L377-5, L554-1, and L554-3 of the Social Security Law and articles L115-1, L262-3 and 262-46 of the Social Work Code.

Mrs, Lebcir Rachida, inmate in Versailles
Date of deposit: 13/04/05, date of extension: 13/08/05
Born on 20/9/1956 in Alger, Algeria, her parents Ahmed Lebcir and Massoud Kadiri, works as scientific assistant, lives in Cergy 22, 95000, allée de la Gerboise, defended by attorney Gille Paruelle
Mr. Betka Abdelkani, divorcee
Born on 02/01/1978 in Chelal Mesila, Alegria, his parents Ameur and Oudina Oumhani, unemployed, lives in Cergy 21, 95000, rue de la Gerboise, defended by attorney Christelle Moncoucou,
Are the two persons subject of the investigation
(...)
Due to the impossibility of carrying out necessary acts (...) and from our personal part, we are honored to solicit the competent authorities in Lebanon to conduct the necessary measures mentioned below, and to return this judicial commission to us in the nearest time possible, annexed with the evidence proving it has been implemented,
Made in Pontoise on November 14, 2005
Signature
Investigative judge
Fabrice Naudé
*****

Facts exposition
(...)

According to investigations, the abovementioned were immediately proven to have been used illegally in France (...) by using falsifed birth certificates and falsified rental receipts. So-called Mohamed Diib Al-Tawil, Lebanese, who was arrested carrying a French passport, and was evicted to Lebanon. He accused Rebecca Devilliers, French, of having provided him with falsified documents. He also confirmed that the so-called Rebecca had provided his friends Abbas Jaber and Joe Shamas, both Lebanese, with French passports. Apparently, a person named Jamal Al-Tawil had recuperated a French passport from Rebecca Devilliers. Uninterrupted probe had led to discover that Rebecaa Devilliers had forged the French passports and IDs to senior military officials of (...) and individuals close to them.

Benefiters were identified as follows:

Colonel Reda El Moussaoui, his companion Wajiha Naamani, their son Rayan El Moussaoui, General Michel Sleiman, his wife Wafa Sleiman, their children Lara, Rita and Charbel Sleiman, General Rafic or Wafic Jizini, his companion Aida Nassar, and his children Jad, Elie, Wissam, and Carla Jizini. The so-called Rebecca Devilliers was arrested by the French police on April 11, 2005, and was then turned out to be the same person as Rashida Lebcir. She confessed later shed had (...) a system that allows her to obtain falsified passports and ID's for the French republic, as she possessed (...) falsified birth certificates and falsified rental receipts. She also confessed she had provided such documents to the aforementioned Lebanese citizens after she had worked on convincing the French authorities that the concerned individuals were born in France, particularly in Pontoise and Colombes.
Rashida Lebcir was then detained (...)
*******

The Lebanese competent authorities are requested to hear the following individuals:

Colonel Reda El Moussaoui and his companion Wajiha Naamani, and son Rayan El Moussaoui
General Michel Sleiman, his wife Wafa Sleiman, and their children Lara, Rita, and Charbel Sleiman
General Rafic or Wafic Jizini, his companion Aida Nassar, and his children Jad, Elie, Wissam, and Carla Jizini
As well as Dib Al Tawil, Jamal Tawil, Abbas Jaber, and Joe Shamas, if need be, whereas the following question is to be asked:
Do you know in person the so-called Rashida Lebcir, previously called Rebecca Devilliers?
Have you met her? If yes, when? Where? And how?
How did she introduce herself to you? How did she identify herself? What did she say she did for work?
Was she Rashida Lebcir, the one previously called Rebecca Devilliers who had provided you with the falsified French passports and ID's?

What did you use these documents for? On what basis? Did you ask the so-called Rashida Lebcir, formerly called Rebecca Devilliers, to provide you with those documents if was she the one who had proposed that?

Did you have a particular reason to obtain the French citizenship?

Did the so-called Rebecca Devilliers explain to you how she acted to obtain those falsified documents?

When did you obtain those documents? How? Who was the person who had delivered them to you?

When did you know that those documents were not correct?

What was your reaction back then?

Had the so-called Rebecca Devilliers receive anything from you in counterpart for your obtaining those documents? And did she receive any kickback for that purpose? If yes, what was the amount?
Would you like to add anything?

We kindly thank the Lebanese competent authorities for including the aforementioned information in any other certified official document that would answer the concerned parties likely to advance any question related. Authorities are also kindly thanked for returning to us the overall documents and the present international commission via diplomatic channels.