Sentences of 14 months in prison suspended to six months in prison – placed under an electronic bracelet – were handed down Friday in Paris against six ex-college students tried for their involvement in the assassination of professor Samuel Paty by a young jihadist in 2020.
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Punishments ordered in view of “ of the seriousness of the facts “, of their ” personality ” And ” evolution ”, and while the offenses are “ perfectly established “, declared the children’s court in its judgment, read in open court after two weeks of a closed-door trial.
The president called the teenagers, now aged 16 to 18 years old, to the stand one by one to detail their convictions, which generally complied with the requirements of the anti-terrorism prosecution. “ You understood ? ”, she asked everyone. The trial was held strictly behind closed doors given their young age at the time of the events – between 13 and 15 years old.
Accused of having designated the professor to the assailant
Five of the teenagers, aged 14 and 15, were on trial for conspiracy to commit aggravated violence. They are accused of having monitored the surroundings of the college and designated Samuel Paty as the attacker, for remuneration.
This ” while you were aware of the criticisms made “, to college ” and on social networks » against Samuel Paty, the president told them. The heaviest sentence, two years in prison including six months under an electronic bracelet, was handed down against the former schoolboy approached by the attacker Abdoullakh Anzorov. “ You communicated to the attacker the physical and clothing description » of the teacher and his “ route usually taken “, ” you stayed for several hours » with him and have “ favored ” her “ concealment “, the court told him. “ You recruited other college students to nominate » the teacher, organized the “ monitoring » near the college « for several hours ” and finally ” designated Samuel Paty upon leaving college “.
Four other young people were sentenced to sentences ranging from 14 months with suspended probation (that is to say accompanied by a series of obligations, in particular to follow education or training and to be followed by professionals of childhood) at 18 months with probationary suspension.
“ Persistent lie »
A sixth teenager, aged 13 at the time of the facts, was sentenced to 18 months of probation for slanderous denunciation. This schoolgirl had wrongly claimed that Samuel Paty had asked the Muslim students in the class to report and leave the class before showing the caricatures of Mohammed. She hadn’t actually attended this class.
Read alsoAssassination of Samuel Paty: eight adults and six adolescents sent to trial
The court emphasized before her “ the existence of a persistent lie » that the teenager has “ recognized » and who had been “ materialized » by filing a complaint against Samuel Paty. His lie was at the origin of a violent campaign fueled on social networks by his father, Brahim Chnina, and by an Islamist activist, Abdelhakim Sefrioui, author of videos which had drawn attention to the professor. They will be tried in a second trial with six other adults, before the special assize court in Paris at the end of 2024.
For Valérie Le Roy, lawyer for Samuel Paty’s family, the sentences “are not up to par” with what happened.
“I don’t see the unanimous start of the judicial institution, I don’t see this revolt, I don’t see this stop or this signal to say “be careful, we don’t do that in France, even if we are minors”
For Valérie Le Roy, lawyer for Samuel Paty’s family, the sentences handed down are not “up to par”