French police searched the Arab World Institute in Paris on Monday as part of an expanding investigation into former culture minister Jack Lang and his links to the late U.S. sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The searches, confirmed by France’s National Financial Prosecutor (PNF), are among several actions taken after newly released U.S. documents related to Epstein triggered fresh scrutiny across Europe.
Lang, 86, resigned earlier this month from his post as head of the Institute, a prominent cultural center dedicated to the Arab world and overseen by France’s foreign ministry.
His name appeared nearly 700 times in the latest tranche of Epstein files made public in the United States.
French prosecutors have opened a preliminary investigation into Lang and his daughter, Caroline Lang, on suspicion of tax fraud and laundering the proceeds of tax evasion.
Both have repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.
The Arab World Institute said it could not immediately comment on the police operation.
Lang has maintained he was unaware of Epstein’s crimes despite corresponding with him between 2012 and 2019, years after the financier’s 2008 conviction for soliciting prostitution from an underage girl.
Epstein died in a U.S. prison in 2019 in what authorities ruled a suicide.
Lang told staff on Monday, “I am totally serene because I have nothing to hide.”
His lawyer, Laurent Merlet, previously said “there was no movement of funds.”
Prosecutors said a dedicated team was established on Saturday to review millions of newly released Epstein documents in coordination with financial investigators and national police.
Among the matters under analysis is an offshore company in the U.S. Virgin Islands reportedly set up by Epstein and Caroline Lang, ostensibly to purchase artworks.
The company was not declared to French tax authorities, though Caroline Lang has said she received no money and was unaware of being named in Epstein’s will.
Investigators are also examining other figures cited in the documents, including French diplomat Fabrice Aidan, who has rejected allegations of transferring United Nations documents to Epstein.
The inquiry remains at a preliminary stage and does not necessarily lead to criminal charges.