The Metz Assize Court sentenced Julien Fernandez, 28, to 20 years in prison for the murder of Antoine Mamone, found in his apartment in Thionville on 1is February 2013, his 50th birthday. Defense counsel, Me Olivier Rondu is appealing the verdict that fell on Friday night after three days of trial. He had pleaded guilty to his client’s acquittal. It raises several areas of shadow in this file as old as it is bulky. “Doubt must benefit the accused,” he said.
Antoine Mamone has not given any sign of life since December 14, 2012, the day Julien Fernandez went to his home. The two men had made contact on a gay dating site. The victim’s body had been stabbed with sixteen stab wounds to the head, neck and back. He had been found in an advanced state of decomposition, wearing only a t-shirt pulled up to the back and a pair of sneakers. The body was on the bed, under a blanket. The accused assures that the victim was alive when he left the apartment after stealing 40 euros.
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