Trial of the Trèbes and Carcassonne attacks: sentences of up to 5 years in prison were handed down

Le verdict a été rendu. L'Indépendant F. M.

Ce vendredi 23 février 2024, la cour d'assises spéciale de Paris a rendu son verdict après cinq semaines de procès des attentats de Trèbes et Carcassonne.

It's the end. After five weeks, the trial of the 2018 Trèbes and Carcassonne attacks ends. This Friday, February 23, the special assize court of Paris rendered its verdict and handed down sentences of up to 5 years in prison against the seven accused, report our colleagues from L'Independent.

Up to 5 years in prison

After long weeks of intense emotion, justice has delivered its verdict. The seven defendants were sentenced to up to 5 years in prison.

The special assize court retained the head of the terrorist criminal association only for Marine Pequignot, the terrorist's girlfriend. Thus, the heaviest sentence of this trial was handed down for her: "5 years in prison including 2 years with a probationary suspension. The court orders socio-judicial monitoring for 5 years for terrorist criminal association", indicates L'Indépendant .

For Sofiane Manaa, a sentence of one year in prison combined with a suspended sentence of 6 months with a ban on carrying a weapon on a decade was pronounced by the special assize court.

One of the best friends of the terrorist Radouane Lakdim, Baghdad Haddaoui, was sentenced to 3 years including 2 years suspended. Ahmed Arfaoui, the brother-in-law of the terrorist Radouane Lakdim, #39;assailant, is sentenced to 3 years in prison. Sofian Boudebbouza was sentenced to 4 years in prison, including 2 years with a probationary suspension of 3 years with the obligation to find a job as well as a ban on carrying a weapon, report our colleagues.

Samir Manaa, the one who accompanied the terrorist bought the knife, who the weapon that killed gendarme Arnaud Beltrame, was sentenced to 3 years in prison and a ban on carrying a weapon for 10 years.

Finally, a sentence of 4 years in prison and a ban on residence in Carcassonne for 5 years was handed down against Reda El Yaakoubi.

Requisitions

Earlier in the week, this Tuesday, the national anti-terrorism prosecutor's office had requested sentences of up to 11 years' imprisonment for those tried for the Trèbes and Carcassonne attacks.

The heaviest sentences were handed down to two protagonists:  Samir Manaa, who had accompanied the assailant to buy the knife, this weapon which will kill the soldier; and Marine Pequignot, the terrorist's girlfriend, also radicalized.

Respectively, the requisitions were "10 years of criminal imprisonment with socio-judicial monitoring of 3 years, and 11 years of criminal confinement with socio-judicial monitoring of 3 years", report our colleagues from L'Indépendant.

Sentences ranging from one year's imprisonment, including four months suspended, to eight years' imprisonment were requested against the five other people tried during this trial.

Who are the judged ?

As a reminder, five appeared for criminal terrorist association (AMT), a charge punishable by thirty years in prison, the sixth for failure to report a crime and the last for possession of a weapon .

Samir Manaa, 28 years old, is Radouane Lakdim's closest friend in this case. According to anti-terrorist magistrates, he took him to an armory, two weeks before the events, to buy a knife, used to slit the throat of Lieutenant-Colonel Arnaud Beltrame, reportsFrance info.

Other accused: Ahmed Arfaoui, 28 years old, the brother-in-law of Redouane Lakdim, also involved with him in trafficking, and who thus “gave him access by means of his passage to the ;#39;terrorist act."

Marine Pequignot, 24 years old, converted to Islam, who shares his ideology and who was his girlfriend, would have been informed of his plans.