At the trial of the Nice attacks, the court heard this Thursday afternoon, Christian Estrosi, mayor of Nice from 2008 to June 2016 then from 2017, who was first security assistant on July 14, 2016. At the heart of his hearing, the question of possible failures to secure the “Prom”, the Promenade des Anglais. This is not the subject of the current trial, but the security system has been the subject of numerous criticisms and questions during the testimony of the civil parties, of which the president has occasionally made himself the spokesperson.
With our special correspondent at the Paris Courthouse, Laura Martel
From the outset, Christian Estrosi promises not to evade any question, but it is first in a lyrical preamble that he launches, evoking pell-mell a peace agreement signed in Nice in 1538, his childhood memories de la Prom’, his emotion at the attack, his closeness to the victims. Side civil parties, some annoyed sighs are heard.
Coming to the security of that evening, the city councilor, supporting files, cites figures and legislation, affirms that the municipal police were more numerous than in 2015, and above all, returns the responsibility for the device to the State. Securing major events, he insists, “ is under national jurisdiction », the preparatory meetings were under prefectural authority.
Meetings during which the scenario of a truck attack “ was never considered “, then points out President Raviot. “ A posteriori, we can always wonder why we did not imagine what was improbable defends Christian Estrosi, recalling that this modus operandi was “ a first in Europe “.
And the president revives it: and this ” dozen locations What was the terrorist able to do, despite the video surveillance? With over 1,800 cameras, impossible for the human eye “to detect such behavior, but monitoring has allowed” to reconstruct the killer’s journey “argues the mayor.
It is therefore “ a very useful device for solving cases, but whose usefulness upstream is subject to cautionn” points out the president to the one who, after the attack in Charlie Hebdostated that ” if Paris had the same remote surveillance network as Nice, the Kouachi brothers would not have passed three crossroads without being neutralized “.
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We would like him to tell us the truth, that there weren’t enough policemen… As far as we know the truth in this story of protection. I’m not saying it’s his fault, but still, he was mayor, agent too. Suddenly, they say it’s the prefect, suddenly it’s President Hollande… We’re lost in all that.
Anger and disappointment of the civil parties after the hearing of Christian Estrosi