The French town of Agde, situated on theMediterranean coast, has been rocked by a scandal involving the town's mayor and a fortune teller.
The mayor, Gilles d'Ettore, a former secret service officer and police officer, and the fortune teller, Sophia Martinez, are both in jail while under a judicial investigation, as reported by BBC News.
While Martinez is accused of embezzling the mayor, he stands accused of corruption for spending lavish amounts of taxpayers' money on her.
Martinez Used Her Ventriloquist Skills to Assume the Tone of D'Ettore's Deceased Father, 'Voices' of Angels
It all started when d'Ettore reached out to Martinez, who had a reputation to be able to speak to the dead, and asked her to put him in touch with his father. While performing séances, her voice would suddenly change and take on the tone of the mayor's father.
Over the past four years it is alleged that she manipulated the mayor in person and by phone with remarkable ventriloquist skills. He received thousands of mysterious calls from "voices" of the dead including angels, some of them urging the mayor to help the fortune teller.
Martinez Paid for Martinez's Lavish Holidays using Taxpayers' Money, Provided Employment to Her Family
The mayor is alleged to have paid for lavish holidays for Ms Martinez and her family, including to Polynesia and Thailand, all using public funds.
It's alleged that the "voices" persuaded him to hire several members of her family to work for the town council and also renovate her home. Local businesses with connections to the mayor did the work for free out of fear of losing future contracts with him.
A judge is keeping both the mayor and fortune teller in custody to prevent potential witness tampering. Ms Martinez has been moved to solitary confinement after being assaulted at her women's only prison wing with inmates accusing her of witchcraft.
