One of France’s top generals,former Grand Chancellor of the Legion of Honour (Légion d'honneur) Benoît Puga was taken into police custody last week as part of a police investigation into whether he received bribes in exchange for putting nominees forward for prestigious national honours. Puga was head of the body that awards the Legion of Honour from 2016 to 2023. The five-star general also served as chief of staff to the president at the Élysée Palace under former French leaders Nicolas Sarkozy and François Hollande.
He was taken into police custody in the morning on September 22 and released the next evening, French media outletLe Parisien reportedon Thursday. The Legion of Honour is France's highest civil and military order of merit and one of the most famous national honours in the world, offering recognition for outstanding service and contributions to France. Created by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1802, recipients include leaders of France’s 1789 Revolution and the World War II Resistance.
More recent inductions includeGisèle Pélicot,Volodymyr Zelenskyand France's victorious 2018 men's World Cup football team, along with prominent military officers, civil servants, artists and scientists. Read more'I wanted my story to help others': Gisèle Pelicot memoir launches in 22 languages French president Emmanuel Macron awards the Legion of Honour medal to football player Kylian Mbappé at the Élysée Palace in Paris on June 4, 2019. © François Mori, AP A source said that General Puga was questioned by French anticorruption body l’Office central de lutte contre la corruption et les infractions financières et fiscales as part of an ongoing 2023 investigation into corruption, influence peddling and illegal conflict of interest. At the heart of the investigation is former Republican senator Jean-Pierre Bansard, who died in 2024 – one year after aMediapart investigationrevealed suspicions that he had used his vast fortune to secure honours for members of his entourage.
While senator, three of Bansard’s children and at least nine more of his associates were awarded either the Legion of Honour or France’s second-highest decoration, the National Order of Merit(Ordre national du Mérite). The investigation claimed that Bansard had a “friendly” relationship with Puga who, as grand chancellor of the Legion of Honour, chaired the council that vetted candidates for the national honours submitted by government ministers. Final approval for the honours list rests with the president.
Mediapart claimed that Bansard invited Puga to expensive dinners and on holiday in one of his properties in Corsica as well as providing business opportunities for Puga’s son. The ongoing police investigation “aims to clarify whether, and under what conditions, Benoît Puga – while he was Grand Chancellor of the Legion of Honour – intervened to enable several people in Jean-Pierre Bansard’s family or professional circle to receive decorations between 2016 and 2023", a judicial source told AFP. Puga has denied any wrongdoing, as did Bansard.
Both men’s homes have been searched as part of the investigation along with Bansard’s business and political offices. Police last week questioned Puga’s wife along with others linked to the investigation including a restaurant owner and a former member of the Grand Chancellery, Le Parisien reported. Also questioned was businessman Julien Renault who founded the Foundation for the Legion of Honour in 2019.
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