The brawl occurred on Saturday April 27 late in the afternoon. A minor 15-year-old named Matisse died in Châteauroux (Indre) after a fight. The main suspect, aged 15, carrying a knife, was arrested and taken into police custody, as was his mother, suspected of being involved in the violence. Monday evening, the Bourges (Cher) public prosecutor’s office announced the indictment of the young man for “murder”, as well as his placement in detention. His 37-year-old mother was indicted for “willful violence” and placed under judicial supervision. Franceinfo summarizes what we know about this affair.
A fight in a residential area
Saturday, between 5:30 p.m. and 6 p.m., a fight between two teenagers broke out in a street in Châteauroux, in the Saint-Denis district, described as “residential and classic” by the mayor of the city, who lives there. It’s about a “fight with a bladed weapon, in this case stabbings”, specifies the Châteauroux public prosecutor’s office in a press release published Sunday evening. One of the two teenagers was hit several times in the chest and back, reports France 3. His name is Matisse, he is the son of a well-known restaurateur and in training, his relatives confirmed to the regional channel. He was 15 years old, according to the Bourges prosecutor, Céline Visiedo, who specifies that one of the blows “reached directly to the heart”.
“The two minors knew each other and had insulted each other before the incident”continues the magistrate in her press release released Monday evening. “According to the statements of the minor indicted, he received a punch from the victimadds Céline Visiedo. He explained that overcome by anger, he went to his building to grab a knife blade and stabbed the victim several times before fleeing.” “The minor’s mother, who followed him, in turn slapped the victim., adds the Bourges prosecutor.
ThisSome residents witnessed the scene. A young mother, Marie-Mathilde, said he heard screams. “When I leaned down, I saw a young man dressed in black punching the victim, but I did not see a knife. I saw the young man on the ground who said that his stomach hurt. back and he was cold”she testifies to France Bleu. Marie-Mathilde then throws a blanket from her window and rushes to go downstairs, where she finds herself with a passerby. “When we lifted his t-shirt, we saw the clothes soaked in blood. We compressed the wounds until the firefighters arrived”details the young woman, “shocked”.
Another neighbor explains to France 3 that she is “went to help the young man while he was dying.” In critical condition when the firefighters took charge, Matisse did not survive his serious injuries. He is dead “during the evening”specified the Châteauroux public prosecutor’s office. An investigation into intentional homicide has been opened, announced the prosecution, which ordered an autopsy of the victim. The investigations are entrusted to the interregional judicial police service of Orléans and to the departmental judicial police service of the Châteauroux police station.
A 15-year-old boy and his mother implicated
Two hours after the fight, a teenager, “aged 15 years at the time of the facts”, is arrested. He is suspected of having carried out the stabbings. The suspect “has never been convicted by the courts and his criminal record is clean”, specifies the Châteauroux prosecutor. However, according to Agnès Auboin, he is implicated in two criminal proceedings, including one for acts of aggravated theft with violence, which “gave rise to the opening of a judicial investigation” on April 22.
The prosecutor specifies that he was indicted and placed under judicial supervision. This measurement is “only (…) provided for by the Code of Criminal Justice for Minors”notably “for a minor of his age, without previous conviction and indicted for acts of a criminal nature”, underlines Agnès Auboin. The latter clarified on Monday that this procedure has no link with the brawl on Saturday.
Aged 37, the mother of the suspected teenager, who has no criminal record, was also arrested at 8:45 p.m., then placed in police custody. She was then indicted for intentional violence against a vulnerable person. Placed under judicial supervision, she is notably prohibited from leaving the department of Indre and from entering into contact with her son, the victim and witnesses.
The latter specifies that this family is “in a regular situation” on French territory, in the face of certain political reactions. The Bourges prosecutor clarified Monday evening that they were “both of Afghan nationality”. “The family of the alleged attacker was known to social services. It was a large family that received support,” declared Gil Avérous, the mayor of Châteauroux, during a press conference organized on Monday. “Like many other families, and that doesn’t mean they are delinquent children”he insisted.
speech by the mayor of Châteauroux
A murder that makes the political class react
As of Sunday evening, Gil Avérous had sent his comments on the social network “deepest condolences and all the support of Castelroussins (…) to the parents, family and loved ones of the victim”.
“The means of justice and investigators to find precisely the entire course of events, that Saturday afternoon, exist. There is no shortage in this area”, he added on Monday. The mayor praised the usefulness of the 400 video surveillance cameras in his city, “even if there was no camera at the very place where the facts occurred”. “There are a number of hearings”underlined Gil Avérous, who implied that the arrests had been possible thanks to the testimonies collected.
Political reactions multiplied on Monday. Originally from Châteauroux, LFI deputy Antoine Léaument says he hopes that the author is “tried as quickly as possible” and testifies “support in this terrible moment which is collapsing us all”. “A firm sanction must be considered educational”comments the former socialist minister Ségolène Royal on “thoughts for his family and loved ones in the face of this new tragedy affecting our region”.
Other right-wing and far-right political figures used this murder to denounce France’s migration policy. “The family of Matisse, the victim, does not want us to bring this subject into the public arena. They do not want us to talk about immigration, to talk about nationality. It’s not something who looks like them to use the words they addressed to me this morning”retorted the mayor of Châteauroux.