Former French PM Fillon faces second financial misconduct probe

FILE PHOTO: Francois Fillon, member of the Republicans political party and 2017 French presidential election candidate of the French centre-right, reacts as he delivers a speech at his campaign headquarters in Paris after early results, France, April 23, 2017. REUTERS/Christian Hartmann/File Photo

PARIS (Reuters) - Former French prime minister Francois Fillon, who is appealing a five-year jail sentence for embezzling public funds, is under investigation again by financial prosecutors over payments to an assistant, his lawyer said on Friday.

Lawyer Antonin Levy accused the National Financial Prosecutor's (PNF) office of a witch hunt and said Fillon, who served as premier under Nicolas Sarkozy from 2007-2012, had committed no wrongdoing.