Overview

• Pierre-Édouard Stérin reported a home invasion after Basque left-wing activists accessed the balconies of his Saint-Jean-de-Luz property and unfurled banners.
• His lawyer called the action premeditated and said it involved a municipal councillor and a parliamentary aide, with a complaint also targeting the EH Bai party.
• The villa, bought at auction in 2022 for €6 million, had been the subject of a 2022 municipal push for a State purchase at €3.7 million to enable a social-housing project.
• The mayor said renovations and enlargement cost about €6 million and argued the protected patrimonial status complicates claims of pure speculation.
• Protesters denounced soaring prices and urged sale-price regulation, while Stérin previously told Le Nouvel Obs he does not plan to keep a house whose address activists publicized.