IMF chief under formal investigation over political fraud

IMF chief Christine Lagarde has been put under formal investigation by French magistrates for negligence in a political fraud affair dating from 2008 when she was finance minister.

Lagarde, who was questioned this week by magistrates in Paris for a fourth time under her existing status as a witness in the long-running saga, said she would contest the decision.

“I have asked my lawyer to use all recourse against this decision which I consider to be completely unfounded,” she said on BFMTV. “I am returning to work in Washington this afternoon.”