French court sentences pair who posed as minister

A Paris court on Wednesday sentenced two men to prison terms of seven and 11 years for their role in a bizarre money-raising scam that involved impersonating a French government minister, sometimes using a silicone mask.

Gilbert Chikli, 54, received the heavier sentence plus a fine of two million euros (USD 2.26 million), while Anthony Lasarevitsch, 35, was fined one million euros on top of his jail term.

The Franco-Israeli pair were on trial for organised fraud and usurping the identity of Jean-Yves Le Drian -- now France's foreign minister, but then minister of defence -- to extort more than 50 million euros from wealthy political, business and religious figures.

They were tried as the alleged masterminds, with five suspected collaborators facing lesser charges.

The scheme, which took place from 2015 to 2016, involved fraudsters posing as Le Drian to ask politicians and executives for financial aid for what they described as secret operations by the French state.

One would appear in video conferences behind a fake official desk, donning a dark suit and a silicone mask of Le Drian.

Chikli and Lasarevitsch denied the charges.