When the Aga Khan took a call from a man claiming to be the French defence minister requesting millions of euros for a top-secret government operation, he quickly agreed. But the person contacting him was not Jean-Yves Le Drian, now France’s foreign minister. France’s international reputation also suffered because several foreign leaders, officials and diplomats complained about the approaches from the purported French minister. “It could have had very grave consequences for diplomatic, political and economic reasons,” said Delphine Meillet, a lawyer representing Mr Le Drian. Most of those who were approached quickly realised they were being targeted in a scam.

Source: The Irish Times February 07, 2020 13:52 UTC