The Wall Street Journal (Paris) - A Renault SA security agent under investigation for his role in an industrial espionage case had money in a Swiss bank account, his lawyer said Wednesday, adding that the money was intended to pay an informant.

Dominique Gevrey has been held in detention since the weekend, as prosecutors try to unravel a bizarre affair that led to the dismissal of three senior managers in January. The managers were accused of taking bribes in exchange for divulging strategic corporate information. However, Renault admitted on Monday that they had been falsely accused, and apologized to them.

Attention has now turned to the money Renault paid out during an investigation last year that led to the three managers' dismissal.

The Paris state prosecutor Jean-Claude Marin said Monday that Renault had paid out €300,000 ($419,800) to cover the cost of its investigation, and had another €400,000 in bills waiting to be paid. Mr. Marin said the evidence pointed to Renault having been the victim of an organized attempt to defraud it.

On Wednesday, Mr. Gevrey's lawyer, Jean-Paul Baduel, said that Mr. Gevrey had money from Renault in a bank, which had been waiting to pay an informant.

"There is money in a Swiss bank account," he told the Wall Street Journal. "Because the spy wants to be paid."

He said Mr. Gevrey was innocent and had told prosecutors about his bank account voluntarily. "Everybody is thinking it's a fraud," he said. "But the problem is, there is a lack of evidence."

Renault has faced criticism over its handling of the case, in particular from the French government, which owns 15% of the company. On Wednesday, Industry Minister Éric Besson called for an audit of Renault's governance practices.

Chief Operating Officer Patrick Pélata offered his resignation on Monday, but Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn didn't accept it. Instead, Mr. Ghosn apologized to the three managers on national television and said that he, Mr. Pélata and other senior managers would forfeit bonus and stock-option provisions.

Analysts say the incident probably won't affect Renault's sales significantly, though it had tarnished the image of the company and Mr. Ghosn.
 

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