Their plan had gone almost without a hitch, at least until the driver of the prison escort went over the throttle, leading the thugs to open fire. The Aix-en-Provence Assize Court sentenced Lofty Boussouak, member of the ” highway hijackers gang “. His accomplices were sentenced to 22 and 18 years for his accomplices by the judges retained the qualification of attempted murder for this spectacular escape.
Resumed six months later
This Monday morning of January 28, 2019, Lofty Boussouak had been taken from his cell in Béziers (Hérault) to the Tarascon courthouse (Bouches-du-Rhône) where an investigating judge wanted to hear him. Objective: to question him about his participation in the “gang of pirates”, criminals who robbed and ransomed owners of luxury cars in the areas of the A7 and A9 motorways.
But this Nîmes, now 31, was never going to arrive in the judge’s office. At 8:30 a.m., when it arrived in court, the van was attacked by two men dressed in black or in camouflage, armed with a handgun and an assault rifle.
After the attack, which lasted just a few seconds, one 9mm caliber case and nine 5.56 caliber cases were found by investigators. And five bullet holes were found on the vehicle of the three prison officials, including one on the driver’s side front windshield, at face level. This bullet had passed through the driver’s head restraint while the latter, lowered, had tried to restart. The prisoner and his two accomplices had fled in a stolen vehicle.
Lofty Boussouak’s run only lasted six months. He was finally arrested in an isolated hamlet in the Gard with his two accomplices.