25 September 2026 , 18:57
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Offenses involving corruption, influence peddling, and other integrity violations within the French National Police surged by 45 percent between 2024 and 2025, reaching their highest level in five years, according to an internal oversight report released this week.
The annual assessment by the General Inspectorate of the National Police, or IGPN, recorded 341 integrity breaches in 2025, up from 234 the previous year. The infractions encompassed bribery, conflicts of interest, embezzlement of public funds, extortion, breaches of professional secrecy, and the unauthorized handling of sensitive personal data.
The oversight agency reported steep increases across three primary categories: unauthorized queries of police databases, which jumped by 80 percent; corruption offenses, which rose by 33 percent; and breaches of professional secrecy, which increased by 25 percent.
Stéphane Hardouin, the head of the IGPN, acknowledged the sharp rise in misconduct. “There was a significant increase in breaches of integrity,” Hardouin said, pointing specifically to the rise in corruption and database misuse.
The report categorized the motives behind the offenses into three main drivers: financial gain, personal or emotional relationships, and actions carried out under the belief of serving “a just cause.”
In 2025, the watchdog conducted 235 judicial investigations into integrity breaches. These included 88 cases of corruption, five for the misappropriation of public funds, three for influence peddling, and two for extortion by a public official.
However, the degree to which these investigations led to actual punishment remains unclear. In a statement to OCCRP, the communications service of the National Police Directorate noted that while the IGPN conducts extensive inquiries, the oversight body lacks decision-making power, making it impossible to determine how many cases resulted in formal disciplinary action or criminal convictions.
Politics Editor