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Editions du Seuil has said it will not publish a controversial book about King Mohammed VI of Morocco following the arrest of the authors by French police on charges of attempted blackmail and extortion. The publisher's c.e.o. Olivier Bétourné described himself as "staggered" by the development.
Journalists Catherine Graciet and Eric Laurent are the authors of an earlier critical book about the Moroccan monarchy, Le Roi Predateur (The Predatory King). They were preparing a second book on the same subject for Editions du Seuil, but were arrested by French police following a meeting between them and the king's lawyer.
Graciet and Laurent said in interviews that they were trapped, but admitted they “caved in to temptation” by accepting cash in exchange for spiking the latest book and never writing about the king again.
A statement from Seuil said the authors had “deliberately violated their contractual commitments” with the publisher, and that the “necessary confidence” had irrevocably broken down. Olivier Bétourné, Seuil c.e.o., told The Bookseller he couldn’t believe it at first. “I was staggered that this could happen, particularly with such a high-risk book,” he said. He did not hesitate for a second to cancel the contract when it became clear there was a real problem. “It is a betrayal of confidence to us and the public-I am extremely sad and angry.”
The prosecutors allege the journalists had asked for €3m (£2.2m) in return for their silence.
Laurent cited his wife’s generalised cancer as a reason for accepting the cash, and Graciet told the newspaper Le Parisien that she had accepted the cash because of the difference it could make to her life. Reports suggest the deal was struck at between €2m (£1.47m) and €3m (£2.2m).
Another book by Laurent, Aux Banques les Milliards, à nous la crise (Billions for the banks, Crisis for Us), was due to be published by Flammarion on 9th September, but will be delayed because of the charges against the author, a Flammarion spokesperson told The Bookseller. No date has been set for publication.
But a French book trade insider said the authors' careers are unlikely to be over. The source, who asked not to be identified, commented: “They’ll be back after a year or two out of the public eye…The French like wily foxes.”