Friday, the parquet floor of Compiègne announced the opening of an investigation after the disclosure in a Web article of the regional media Oise Weekly the full name and town of residence of the police officer who killed Nahel, 17, in Nanterre (Hauts-de-Seine) during a traffic check.
This investigation was opened for facts disseminating “information making it possible to identify or locate a person holding public authority” for the purpose of exposing him or his family to a risk “of harm to the person or property,” said the prosecutor, Marie-Céline Lawrysz. The research section of the Amiens gendarmerie is in charge of the investigation. The Ministry of the Interior had made a report to the prosecution in this case late Thursday evening.
An unblurred photo also broadcast
” “The publication” Oise Weekly publishes personal information endangering the life of the family of the police officer in detention, ”tweeted Gérald Darmanin. “Despite our requests to remove this irresponsible content, it persists,” he added. In addition to the full name and municipality of residence of the police officer, Oise Weekly publishes a photo of the policeman from the website “Copains d’avant”.
Article 39 of the law of 1881, a law which regulates the right of the press, which prohibits the dissemination of the identity of police officers whose missions require anonymity, “does not prohibit disclosing the identity” of this police officer , the newspaper claimed in a tweet on Friday morning, again giving his full name. The director of the newspaper, Vincent Gérard, was surprised Thursday “by the minister’s decision to act immediately against Oise Weekly while the information has been circulating on the Internet for six days”.
“Information also consists of knowing the names of people and knowing where they come from”, assured Vincent Gérard on Friday, assuring that he had no “deliberate intention to harm”. “I don’t see what forces a local media to talk only about the red fruit festival,” he added.
Asked about the protection of the home of this policeman, the prefecture of Oise indicated that “all the provisions” had been taken “to protect the people who need it”.