France has suspended an honorary consul in Bodrum, Turkey, after she was secretly filmed selling dinghies and life jackets from a shop she owns to refugees trying to reach Greece.
Francoise Olcay admitted to taking part in the trade, but said Turkish authorities were involved too and that someone else would be doing it if she didn't.
Thousands of refugees have tried to reach Greece by transiting through Bodrum. The number of nightly departures appears to have decreased, journalists say, as Turkish police have stepped up patrols since the body of 3-year-old Syrian boy Aylan Kurdi washed up on the beach in early September. Images of the boy sparked international outrage.
Honorary consuls aren't official diplomats. They're usually volunteers who can help out their country's citizens, usually in areas which don't have a proper consulate. Still, the news is likely to be embarrassing for the French foreign ministry, the BBC said.
France 2 TV was investigating where refugees were buying supplies and ended up at a shop with a French flag flying outside and a sign reading, "French honorary consul."
Olcay said she sold the supplies despite knowing how dangerous it could be for the refugees, and that it was wrong but everybody was doing it.