“It is the ghost file”, regrets Me Jean-Gabriel Martin, at the beginning of the first day of the trial of Yassine el Morabet.
The lawyer of the parents of Mehdi Karkas, killed by two shots, in the district of Oriels, in Dreux, on the evening of May 28, 2017, has just learned that the father of the alleged murderer would not come to testify, for reasons medical.
The accused’s brother does not seem to have been affected by the summons from the Assize Court to come, too, to testify. “It is not impossible that I appeal to the police to force them to come before us”, reacts Didier Safar, the president. Two witnesses died during the month of April 2020. One by falling from his car, when it had just been removed by a tow truck from the pound, and he refused to leave it, and the another from cancer.
A young man tried for the murder of Mehdi Karkas, with two shots, in Dreux
This last witness had assured to have seen Yassine el Morabet discussing with Mehdi Karkas, perched on his scooter. “Then I heard three shots,” he assured the Dreux police officers.
A few weeks later, when an examining magistrate was appointed, the man reconsiders his statements. “He no longer spoke French and no longer understood the questions”, regrets one of the investigators. “He hadn’t seen or heard anything anymore. “
“Your main witness is rumor”
It is in this context that Yassine el Morabet, nicknamed “Dindon” in the Oriels district, is tried for the murder of Mehdi Karkas, before the Assize Court, in the Chartres court. Since his arrest on July 11, 2017, in the Yvelines, he has denied. “I was stuck a story where I have nothing to do,” he says.
However, in the quarter of an hour which followed the crime, his name reached the ears of the police officers of the police station of Dreux. “Several people named us ‘Turkey’ as the murderer. He was hated in the neighborhood, ”said the police investigator, during his testimony.
“He was doing anything there! “
Additional difficulty for the Dreux police officers: when they arrived at the scene of the crime, the victim was no longer there. Mehdi Karkas was taken to hospital by witnesses. Sawdust had been thrown on the blood staining the pavement and the scooter was gone. “It is the Drouaise omerta”, notes the police officer. No cartridge case was found on site.
“Your main witness is rumor”, points out Me Philippe Van der Meulen, one of the two defense lawyers, to the investigator, who is convinced of the guilt of the 25-year-old Drouais. “I’m sure he’s the culprit. There is no smoke without fire. “
A conviction supported by the attitude of the parents of the accused. Shortly after the crime, they apologized to the parents of the victim “for what our son did to your son”.
Later, during the investigation, they will explain that they had apologized “because the neighborhood designated our son as the murderer”. Even the mobile seems blurry. “A finger of honor addressed to ‘Turkey’ by Mehdi Karkas”, according to some; “A woman’s story”, according to others, which questioned another investigator. “Mehdi Karkas asked a lot of women in marriage! There was no evidence of a settling of scores against a background of drug trafficking.
A bundle of clues
Defense lawyers will have three days to convince jurors of their client’s innocence, by sweeping away the many elements that could lead to blame. Some elements perhaps, but no material and objective proof. The prosecution will undoubtedly put forward “a bundle of serious and concordant clues”.
Tomorrow, the day will be devoted to testimonies. Will they allow them to see the truth in this difficult issue? The answer will be delivered on Friday evening, when jurors render their verdict. Yassine el Morabet faces 30 years in prison for murder.
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“Everyone has € 3,000 in their pocket”
While he is questioned on his life course by the president of the Assize Court, Yassine el Morabet does not make a verbal demonstration. “Tell us a bit about your family? “” It’s going well, “simply replied the accused. He left school at 15, “to end up struggling in the neighborhood. It’s misery “. He explains that for a time he was addicted to drug trafficking. “It’s survival,” he explains. According to him, he would have made some money by selling cars. “How did you manage to finance the first car? “Asks the president. “There was some for € 3,000. Everyone has € 3,000 in their pocket! “Realizing that he may have said a big mistake, he tries to make up for it:” These are savings I made on the pocket money my parents gave me. According to the survey, his father is a worker, his mother is a housewife and he has eight siblings. A family which he assures us that gave him all the necessary education.
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Jacques Joannopoulos
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