Marine Le Pen's chief of staff has been charged in connection with a probe into alleged misuse of European Union funds.

The EU anti-fraud agency alleges that the far-right presidential candidate gave her chief of staff Catherine Griset and bodyguard Theirry Legier fake jobs paid for out of EU funds.

French prosecutors have charged Ms Griset with breach of trust, while Mr Legier has been released without charge.

Ms Le Pen, who leads the National Front party, described the investigation into her staff as a vendetta against her.

She said: "The French can tell the difference between genuine scandals and political dirty tricks."


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Ms Le Pen is not the only contender to be embroiled in a financial scandal.

Conservative candidate Francois Fillon faces an investigation into allegations that his wife did no real work for the hundreds of thousands of euros in taxpayers' money she was paid.

Mr Fillon, a former prime minister, has apologised for hiring a family member, but has said she carried out genuine work for him.

The affair, dubbed "Penelope-gate" after his wife, initially knocked support for Mr Fillon, but polls suggest he has recovered ground in recent days.

It is not clear if the investigation targeting Ms Le Pen has had an impact on voting intentions, about two months from the first round of balloting on 23 April.

Image: Francois Fillon is engulfed in a scandal involving his wife Penelope, pictured here

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Ms Le Pen is leading in the polls, with Mr Fillon and independent Emmanuel Macron in second place. However, either man would beat Ms Le Pen in the second round, the polls suggest.

Sky's Europe Correspondent Mark Stone, who is in France, said Ms Le Pen's message is resonating.

He said he had spoken to numerous people who do not see themselves as traditional National Front supporters, but who are "fed up with the centrist establishment, politicians and media".

"They feel France is limping: economically, on law and order, on immigration. They want something different and they're willing to give Ms Le Pen a chance," he said.