The case caused five consecutive nights of violence in several municipalities of Seine-Saint-Denis. A 33-year-old father was killed by a police officer on Saturday in Sevran. The shooter was taken into custody. The prosecution requested his indictment for “willful violence resulting in death without intention to give it”, announced the prosecutor of Bobigny, Friday, April 1, during a press briefing. Franceinfo summarizes what we know about this tragedy.
The victim was traveling in a stolen van
The drama unfolded very quickly, Saturday at midday, when a crew from the Aulnay-sous-Bois anti-crime brigade wanted to check a van, stopped at a red light, according to the statement of the prosecutor to the press. . The van had been reported stolen the same day. A complaint had been lodged at the Aulnay police station and an investigation opened. The vehicle was driven by a man named Jean-Paul: the victim of the shooting.
“Figure” from the Beaudottes district, in Sevran, this 30-year-old was at the head of a delivery company and was “very, very much appreciated” in this sector, told the Parisian Sébastien Bastaraud, deputy mayor of Sevran. He had been convicted for acts of “theft and receiving”, according to one of the family’s lawyers, Steeve Ruben, quoted by AFP. He had turned this page of his life when he met his companion, said another lawyer close to him, Philippe-Henry Honegger, who presents him in The Parisian like “a model of reintegration”.
The policeman claimed “to have felt in a state of self-defense”
During his press conference, the prosecutor provided details on the sequence of events that preceded the death of the driver of the van. The police officer, a 32-year-old brigadier, said during his first hearing “standing at the level of the driver’s window, raising his weapon and shouting: ‘Police!’ He said he tried several times to open the door which was locked.
The policeman said that“he saw the driver engage a gear and accelerate strongly”, continued the magistrate. He claimed to have been “imbalance”, “feeling in self-defense” and “to have fired for this reason”. The three other police officers present on the scene were heard by the IGPN on Saturday, specifies the prosecutor.
The van, which had restarted, ended its race by hitting a parked vehicle several hundred meters further, in the neighboring town of Sevran. The driver, seriously injured in the left shoulder blade, died a few hours after being admitted to hospital. The autopsy confirmed that the shooting was the cause of his death.
SEVRAN – The police open fire on the driver of a stolen truck.
His vital prognosis is engaged, he was airlifted. pic.twitter.com/qmnd0DEkzX
— Clement Lanot (@ClementLanot) March 26, 2022
The victim’s family filed a complaint
Jean-Paul’s family filed a complaint with a civil action for “voluntary homicide” on Tuesday, according to the document sent to the dean of the investigating judges of the Bobigny judicial court, which franceinfo was able to consult.
“The criminal offense of intentional homicide is characterized”, can we read in this complaint from the family, represented by lawyers Philippe-Henry Honegger, Steeve Ruben and Arié Alimi. They believe that the police officer, trained in the use of firearms, “couldn’t legitimately ignore lethality” of his shot. A video of the scene filmed by a witness was transmitted with the complaint.
“He had the possibility of aiming at the vehicle in order to stop it [et] was perfectly aware that a shot in the direction of the upper body (…) leads to death.”
The victim’s familyin his complaint
One of the family’s lawyers, Philippe-Henry Honegger, launched a call for witnesses on Tuesday to collect elements that could corroborate or invalidate the version delivered by the police.
The police officer who shot is in custody after being hospitalized
The police officer suspected of killing the driver of the van was taken into custody on Wednesday and it was extended on Thursday. The prosecution requested his indictment for “willful violence resulting in death without intention to give it”, as well as his placement under judicial supervision and the ban on going to the department of Seine-Saint-Denis, except for administrative reasons. or summons. First hospitalized “State of shock”, he could not be heard earlier, according to the prosecutor. The brigadier must be presented to an examining magistrate on Friday evening. He faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
The drama led to five nights of violence
The death of Jean-Paul caused five consecutive nights of scuffles in several communes bordering Seine-Saint-Denis. In Sevran, Aulnay-sous-Bois and Tremblay-en-France, vehicles and garbage cans were set on fire and projectiles thrown at the police.
SEVRAN – New night of incidents: firing of fireworks mortars, fires and tear gas.
On Saturday, police opened fire on a man after a truck was stolen. He is dead. https://t.co/ibU7dGKFHS pic.twitter.com/LIO3bR85uK
— Clement Lanot (@ClementLanot) March 28, 2022
The police made 39 arrests for acts of violence and damage. Fifteen people were referred for immediate appearance, including eight minors, who were brought before a juvenile judge. Two police custody were still in progress on Friday afternoon, some of which concerned minors. Six convictions were also pronounced, according to a report established by the prosecution.
A white march from Aulnay-sous-Bois must take place on Saturday morning in memory of the victim.