“I believe there is no doubt about the intention. There was the desire to crush Franck Labois and pass at all costs. In the Assize Court of the Rhône, the words resonate. This Wednesday, Advocate General Olivier Nagabbo demanded life imprisonment against Farès D., who had fatally mowed down the policeman in January 2020, near Lyon, also considering that the accused had not reported “no remorse”.
“The intention lasts throughout the acceleration” of the van, points out the magistrate for whom pressing the accelerator pedal is comparable to pressing the trigger of a firearm. “The victim was in his field of vision and he threw 2.5 tonnes at full speed at Franck Labois. No braking, no deceleration,” he added.
Theft of detergent packages
On the evening of the tragedy, the policeman, who had been called in to arrest a group of criminals suspected of violent cargo thefts, had summoned the driver to stop while his van was stuck by police vehicles. But the 24-year-old accused, who had just stolen a load of detergents with his accomplices, had tried to flee, hitting the officer and dragging him about ten meters. Plunged into a coma, Franck Labois died two days later.
Judged since Monday for murder of a person holding public authority in the exercise of his functions, Farès D. admitted the facts at the bar, but denied any desire to kill. For the civil parties, on the other hand, the voluntary nature is beyond doubt. “If he doesn’t, he thinks he’s going to be shot,” asserts Me Laurent-Franck Liénart, who represents Franck Labois’ colleagues, members of the Operational Support Group (GAO).
“Not a Villain”
Described as “nice and calm” by those close to him, but also “influenceable”, the accused fell into delinquency from his minority, as the court recalled after two and a half days of debate. A dozen facts already condemned, plus a few judgments still awaited, in particular for the theft of the fatal night.
“I don’t condone what he did, but he’s not a bad guy,” pleaded his mother. “He didn’t want it to come to this, he told me,” she says. “He’s not a murderer, he’s a thief,” said one of his cousins, who came spontaneously to testify at the bar.
The testimonies ended with the intervention of the victim’s brother, who wished to address the accused, despite the emotion that tied his throat. “I would like him to apologize to my mother,” he said in the direction of the young man, prostrate in his box.
“I didn’t want to do that. I saw a space, I accelerated without telling myself that I was going to hit it, ”he pleaded the person concerned on the first day of hearing Monday. The verdict is expected in the evening.