Fourteen people were sentenced Wednesday in Paris to prison terms ranging from 10 to 30 months for defrauding mixed vocational training organisations between 2009 and 2014.
Managers of companies offering in-house training were found guilty of submitting fraudulent invoices to the JOCAs (Authorised Joint Collection Agencies) in order to obtain undue payments.
Some courses were inflated (they actually had fewer hours of training), others actually focused on a topic other than the title (academic support instead of a language course, training in campsite management instead of office automation…), according to the ruling consulted by AFP.
Three million euros in damages
According to the same source, the money paid was sometimes used to finance purchases (e.g. computer equipment, household appliances) or to pay employees instead of financing training.
The 13th Criminal Chamber of the Paris court has singled out four groups of defendants and found them guilty of almost all the crimes of fraud with the aggravating circumstance of organized gang.
Total damage was estimated at around three million euros over the period.
The most serious sentence, 30 months in prison and a fine of 16,000 euros, was imposed on one of the directors of a training company, the only one absent from the trial that took place in June.
An arrest warrant was issued against him and three other defendants, who were sentenced to five years in prison, including two years of semi-liberty, and a fine of 45,000 euros.
Legislation has evolved since
Sentences of imprisonment of up to 15 years were also imposed.
Three women, convicted of having engaged in commercial activity under the pretext of being trainers, were sentenced to 15 months’ suspended prison and a fine of 2,000 euros.
The court stressed in particular that “the funds defrauded came from compulsory deductions.” “Defrauding the OPCAs means stealing from all companies and therefore from employees,” declared President Guillaume Daieff when making the decision.
The evolution of legislation since 2014 is “partly” due to fraud in this case, the ruling also stresses.
At that time there were about twenty OPCAs, which in 2018 became OPCOs (competition operators). Reduced to eleven in number, the latter no longer collect contributions (they are transferred to Urssaf).
Source: BFM TV
