Why was the man in his thirties suspected of having raped a woman on Tuesday July 19 on the forecourt of the city church in Périgueux not taken into custody? Indicted for rape Thursday, July 21, he was placed under judicial control. This means that he must report regularly to the police station, but that he is left free.
He was placed under judicial supervision
We don’t have the victim’s version yet., because she could not be heard. But according to the man, they would have met the same evening, they would have spent the evening together, drinking. Shortly before midnight, a passerby gave the alert, they described a scene of rape on the forecourt of the church. On the spot, residents say they heard screams, some neighbors heard a man tell another “to stop”. Arrested, then placed in police custody, the man in his thirties and originally from Dordogne was indicted for rapeand placed under judicial control before his trial.
Justice can decide to send him to prison at any time
The public prosecutor of Périgueux explains that we cannot send someone to prison like that. To pronounce a placement in provisional detention, justice must demonstrate that the placement under judicial control is not sufficient. Because the defendant would risk starting over, because he could take advantage of it to hide evidence or clues, because he could put pressure on the victim or because he could leave the territory. However, we cannot prove that the 30-year-old will start again. He has a clean criminal recordhe does not have the profile of a predator who follows women in the street.
All these elements will of course have to be compared with the version of the victim, as soon as it has been able to be heard by the investigators. And depending on the progress of the investigation, if it describes a completely different scene for example, justice can decide at any time to send the man to prison.