French Writer Says He`s A `Mosquito` In Arms Trial

Paul-Loup Sulitzer, a highly successful author, is one of 42 people in the dock over the sale of $790 million in arms to Angola.

A popular French thriller writer on trial over illegal weapons sales to Angola admitted on Tuesday receiving 300,000 euros ($386,200) from arms dealers, but said he only played a marginal role in the operation.

Paul-Loup Sulitzer, a highly successful author, is one of 42 people in the dock over the sale of $790 million in arms to Angola during the country's civil war, which ended in 2002. Sulitzer, 62, told the court he received various payments in return for passing on information whenever he heard that writers or journalists were looking into Angola.

"I admit I had my hand in the honey pot, but I have paid for that," he said, referring to a six-month suspended sentence he had received in a separate case for failing to inform the tax authorities about the payments.

Prosecutors believe two key figures, Pierre Falcone, a French businessman, and Arkadi Gaydamak, a Russian-Israeli millionaire, set up a large network to help them sell armaments to Angola in defiance of a United Nations embargo.

Sulitzer told the court Falcone had wired money to offshore accounts or handed him wads of cash. He denied accusations that he had played a bigger role in the arms sales, and said the legal moves against him were out of proportion to the crime.

"I have had my passport confiscated for nine months, which for an international writer and consultant is a deadly blow. They are trying to kill a mosquito with a nuclear bomb," he said.

Judge Jean-Baptiste Parlos slapped down his comment. "Assuming that you are a mosquito, you are a mosquito with a lot of bank accounts," he said.

Besides the offshore accounts, Sulitzer also told the court that he had several hundred thousand euros hidden away in his basement, explaining that this was a family tradition.

"During the war, the members of my family who saved themselves were those who had money in the cellar," he said.

Sulitzer is one of France's most prolific writers, churning out what he has called "financial westerns" with enormous regularity. He also has major business concerns and reputedly made his first million dollars before he was 20.

The son of late President Francois Mitterrand, a former interior minister and a leading French intellectual are also accused of taking money from Falcone and his business partner to use their influence to favour the Angola arms deals.

The trial has caused tensions between Paris and Luanda, where President Eduardo dos Santos still rules.

Prosecutors say the illegal arms shipments helped dos Santos win his civil war against Jonas Savimbi's UNITA rebels.

Angola tried but failed to get the trial cancelled, citing national security. The case continues on Wednesday and is scheduled to run well into 2009.