Investigators around the truck on July 15, 2016 in Nice the day after the attack – ANNE-CHRISTINE POUJOULAT AFP
Italian justice authorized his extradition two weeks ago. An Albanian suspected of having supplied a weapon to Mohamed Lahouaiej Bouhlel, the author of the truck attack perpetrated in Nice on July 14, 2016, was handed over to France on Friday.
“Endri Elezi, born June 10, 1992 in Albania, was delivered today to the French authorities at Fiumicino airport”, near Rome, specifies the transalpine police. The suspect, who was the subject of a European warrant, was arrested on April 21 in southern Italy.
He denies en bloc
Nicknamed “Gino”, Endri Elezi allegedly provided the assailant with an assault rifle from a burglary and hidden in a forest on the heights of Nice. He denies outright.
This Italian court decision comes after the Paris Court of Appeal confirmed in March the referral to the assizes of eight people, including Endri Elezi, in this case. The Albanian is indicted for “criminal association” and “violation of the law on weapons”, in the part of the investigation relating to arms trafficking.
Forensic information could not demonstrate for five suspects who supplied weapons to the terrorist that they had knowledge of his planned attack. The terrorist qualification was therefore ruled out and they are dismissed for common law offenses.