six men tried for human trafficking of unaccompanied Moroccan minors

The trial of six Algerian nationals opens Tuesday before the Paris criminal court. They are accused of having encouraged children and adolescents to steal, all while introducing them to psychotropic products.

They were nicknamed the “little thieves of Trocadéro”. These children and adolescents, all unaccompanied minors, arrived alone from Morocco and driven to theft in this tourist district of the French capital near the Eiffel Tower. Six men aged 23 to 39 are on trial before the Paris Criminal Court from Tuesday January 9. These Algerian nationals are notably accused of human trafficking. Franceinfo returns to the details of this affair.

First, in 2022, there will be an increase in violent thefts in the area of ​​the Eiffel Tower in Paris, for which tourists will bear the brunt. Then the “Hors la rue” association, which provides shelter for homeless minors, reported the worrying situation of children who were drugged and had signs of beatings. According to this association, these children were under the control of unscrupulous exploiters acting in the same sector.

To find these exploiters, investigators set up telephone tapping, hid microphones under benches on the Trocadéro esplanade and followed them. They eventually arrested six men suspected of taking advantage of the boys’ vulnerability.

“What we need to do is stop the adults”

With this case, it is the first time that investigators consider these children and adolescents not as culprits, but as victims, welcomes Me Daoud, lawyer for one of the 12 young civil parties, Karim who was 13 years old at the time. time of the facts. According to her, we need to change the way we look at these children. “It’s quite natural that we look at them as thieves because they snatch necklaces, cell phones, they steal money, but it’s important to realize that it’s not them alone who have decided to do that. And then there are children in the file, the youngest of whom is 8 years old”recalls the lawyer.

“There are adults behind who force them, telling them ‘if you don’t steal, you won’t sleep in the caravan tonight’, ‘if you don’t steal, I will hit you’, ‘if you don’t steal, I’m not going to continue giving you the medicine I’m giving you.’ So they’re in fear themselves.”

Me Daoud, lawyer for one of the civil parties

at franceinfo

The drugs in question are Rivotril Lyrica combined with ecstasy, a very addictive cocktail which disinhibited young people to the point that they had named it “courage”. The six defendants spoke of “candy“. Before the Paris court, they must answer in addition to “trafficking in human beings”, “chemical subjugation of minors”, “mistreatment” and “coercion to commit crimes”. They face 20 years of imprisonment, while the trial is scheduled until Friday.