Attempted attack in Villejuif: life imprisonment confirmed on appeal for Sid Ahmed Ghlam – archyde

Life imprisonment was confirmed on Thursday, October 28, against Algerian student Sid Ahmed Ghlam, on appeal for the murder of a young woman and an abortive attack on a church in Villejuif (Val-de-Marne) in April 2015.

The 30-year-old student, “In a state of stress”, according to the president of the special assize court, Emmanuelle Bessone, refused to appear at the hearing for the statement of the judgment. He refused to leave his cell in the Palais de Justice to hear the verdict, forcing the special assize court in Paris to send a bailiff to notify him of his judgment.

“This demonstrates the cowardice of this individual who ultimately proved incapable of confronting Aurélie Chatelain’s family”, commented Antoine Casubolo-Ferro, the lawyer for the murdered young woman.

The court ultimately did not follow the requisitions of the Advocates General of the National Anti-Terrorism Prosecutor’s Office (PNAT), who had called for the maximum penalty provided for by law. If Sid Ahmed Ghlam is sentenced, as in first instance, to life imprisonment, he is no longer subject to a 22-year security sentence. On the other hand, his ban from the territory after his imprisonment was confirmed.

Confessions that do not convince

In their requisitions, the two PNAT attorneys general recalled that Sid Ahmed Ghlam was a “Man of extraordinary danger” with a vision “Misguided and paranoid” of his religion. “Its objective was to sow terror”, they argued. During his appeal trial, Mr. Ghlam “Persevered in his lies in a perverse way”. “There is nothing to expect from him, added the representatives of the PNAT. He did not have the courage to take responsibility for his actions. “

“Lying is part of how it works” and “He feeds a real hatred for the West”, they said again. Contrary to his trial at first instance, Mr. Ghlam admitted this time to having traveled to Syria to meet with executives of the Islamic State (IS) organization. He also admitted that he had intended to kill parishioners in a church in Villejuif before giving up his plan.

“But these confessions are not. We were already convinced “ that the accused had traveled to Syria and wanted to carry out a deadly attack on a church, the attorneys general said. At first instance, Ghlam admitted to having met with IS executives, but in Turkey, and he maintained that it was just “To scare” to parishioners.

On appeal, he persisted in denying being the author of the assassination of Aurélie Châtelain, coldly shot in a parking lot in Villejuif in order to steal her car. As in the first instance, Mr. Ghlam maintained that a mysterious accomplice, of which the investigators did not find any trace, had killed the young mother aged 32.

Only Mr. Ghlam’s blood and DNA were found at the crime scene, the attorneys general recalled. After the assassination, he accidentally injured his thigh while putting his gun back on his belt. This injury had forced him to give up his plan to attack.