Far-right French candidate calls EU probe 'political act'

PARIS – Far-right leader Marine Le Pen says a French investigation into accusations that members of her National Front party tricked the European Union out of hundreds of thousands of euros is a "political act" by a system she wants to break.

Le Pen, a leading presidential candidate, also said on Friday that she intends to file a legal complaint against the European anti-fraud office to contest its findings that parliamentary aides — her own included — were wrongly paid with European funds.

Europe's anti-fraud office found that 19 party members used aides on the French Parliament's payroll for political activity. That spurred French prosecutors to open a separate investigation.

Le Pen claimed, without providing details, she has "proof of collusion" between the office and the EU parliament. Her lawyer wasn't available.