A local security official accused the French government of attempting to cover up security shortcomings that may have contributed to the terrorist attack in Nice that killed 84 people two weeks ago.
Sandra Bertin, who is in charge of Nice’s surveillance network, said Interior Ministry officials pressured her to report the presence of national police units after the July 14 attack even though she had not seen any, the Washington Post reported Monday.
Bertin told the French paper Journal du Dimanche that government officials told her to "make clear" that she saw "the national police at two points" on the Nice promenade, where a truck mowed down dozens of people during Bastille Day celebrations.
"The national police were perhaps there, but I couldn’t see them on video," she said, adding that she had been "harassed for an hour" on the phone by French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve.
Bertin said she told Cazeneuve that she "would only write what I had seen."
Cazeneuve denied the allegations and said he would file a defamation lawsuit against Bertin for the "grave accusations."
Cazeneuve conceded Thursday that no national police units had patrolled the entrance to Nice’s promenade, where the attack occurred. He previously claimed that national police units were present at the entrance.
The Interior Ministry said in a statement that "it would be very helpful" if Bertin would speak with investigators to identify the people who allegedly urged her to doctor the records.
The attack on Nice marked the third large-scale terrorist attack in France in less than two years.