“You are a magician, sir!” : four years in prison for stealing elderly people's bank cards from ATMs

The two defendants were tried in immediate appearance at the Alès court. FREE MIDI – CHARLES LEDUC

A repeat offender, a resident of Beaucaire was on trial in Alès, this Thursday, January 18, for attacking retirees who saw nothing coming, in Gard, Ardèche and Isère. With bank cards, he made money withdrawals and made purchases. His partner was accused of complicity.

Twenty-eight incidents between July and November, thirteen victims, almost all elderly people. This Thursday, January 18, at the Alès criminal court, a 37-year-old Beaucairois and his 41-year-old partner, unknown to the courts, are being tried in immediate appearance. Him for theft and fraud, she for complicity.

What was this thief's technique ?

The thirty-year-old is a repeat offender and his cumulative convictions on his criminal record reach seventeen years in prison. At ATMs, he stole bank cards and used them to withdraw money or make purchases. This, in the north of Gard, in municipalities such as Barjac and Saint-Ambroix, but also in Ardèche or Isère. "You are a magician, Sir!", underlines Marie-Lucie Godard, the president of the audience, when mentioning his technique. This delinquent, in fact, discreetly looked at the code of the card, diverted the attention of its owner to grab it, then said that the credit card had been swallowed by the machine. Misdeeds he committed on weekends or Mondays, when bank branches are closed. In the end, the total amount of withdrawals and subsequent purchases reached more than 11,000 €.

"A bad gear", explains the defendant

When questioned, the accused said he “chose the wrong path”, to repay a loan after being made redundant, before being dragged into “a bad spiral”. He then defends his partner: "She has nothing to do with all of this. She never stole a piece of candy." "We saw her in stores", the president then raises. Precisely, this thirty-year-old defends herself as best she can before the judge confronts her with her contradictions and tells her that ’ "at some point, you know it's going to end badly". The accomplice ended up admitting that she suspected that the CBs were stolen…

Me Euria Thomasian: "The answer is elsewhere"

"This file is the story of a man who, through hard work, excelled in his profession: thug, thief and crook", attacks Quentin Larroque, the deputy prosecutor. Against the "master of illusionism", he requires four years in prison, a committal warrant, the revocation of a six-month suspended sentence and a ban from the Gard for three years. For his accomplice, he wants 18 months suspended and 3000 € fine. "When we are in love, we can not see things”, raises Me Gilbert Bekale, the woman’s lawyer, pleading for release. Me Euria Thomasian, for the accused, believes that "the answer lies elsewhere: it’s not in prison, it’s in education".< /p>

He is prohibited from staying in Gard for three years

*In vain. He gets 42 months and his suspended sentence is revoked, which means four years in prison. Added to this is a warrant of committal and a ban from the Gard for three years. His common-law wife gets a one-year suspended sentence and must pay a fine of 3000 €.

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