Preliminary hearing set for ex-deputy premier Nathalie Normandeau

Former deputy premier Nathalie Normandeau and six co-accused, all facing corruption, breach of trust and bribery charges, were back in a Quebec City courtroom Monday.

• Nathalie Normandeau requests judge and jury trial
• Nathalie Normandeau, ex-Quebec deputy premier, arrested by UPAC

The date of Sept. 28 was set for a preliminary inquiry into corruption-related charges. Court of Quebec Judge Alain Morand requested that all seven of the accused appear Monday.

Normandeau was arrested in March during a raid by UPAC, the province's anti-corruption unit, along with:

• Bruno Lortie, her former chief of staff.
• Marc-Yvan Côté, Mario Martel and France Michaud, three former executives from the engineering firm Roche (now known as Norda Stelo).
• François Roussy, the former mayor of Gaspé.
• Ernest Murray, the former manager of Pauline Marois's Charlevoix riding office.

The charges they face relate to illegal campaign financing and a contract awarded for a water treatment plant in Boisbriand, Que.

• A closer look at the Quebec political figures arrested by UPAC

According to public documents, while Normandeau was serving as municipal affairs minister, she overruled senior bureaucrats to award an $11-million contract to engineering firm Roche.

Roche did fundraising for Normandeau during her time as an MNA and Liberal candidate.

The Crown would like all seven co-accused to stand trial at the same time.

"These events happened around the same time with the same players," said Crown prosecutor Pascal Lescarbeau.

In July, lawyers for Normandeau told a judge they plan to argue there isn't enough evidence to justify a trial.

• READ MORE: Nathalie Normandeau: Rise and fall of a political star

​After leaving politics, Normandeau began co-hosting a popular radio show in Quebec City but was let go shortly after her arrest last March.

She has since been hired to lead another on-air show in Quebec City, beginning in September.