In front of the gates of Arthur-Rimbaud college, everyone only talks about that. Of the attack suffered by Samara on Tuesday. The young girl, a fourth grade student, was violently attacked by three teenagers in front of her college in Montpellier. Having fallen into a coma, she came out Wednesday evening. “She will be interviewed this Thursday,” specifies the prosecution.
The three people suspected of having attacked her, a young girl, also aged 14, as well as two boys aged 14 and 15 (one of whom is already known to the courts), are interviewed by the head of attempted murder of a minor under the age of fifteen. The investigation is being carried out by the Montpellier judicial police. It seems to indicate more and more clearly the role of social networks in this sordid affair.
“We hear almost as many versions as there are students,” tempers Ahmed, who admits not knowing what really happened in front of the school gates on Tuesday, around 4 p.m. “I went out at that time,” Leny recalls. There was a large grouping, as sometimes happens. But if you want to avoid getting involved in fights, it’s better to move away. When I got to the bus, I saw people running in all directions. »
“Fights from time to time, but not to the point of putting people in a coma”
Placed in the REP + zone, the college is located halfway between the impoverished districts of Celleneuve and La Paillade. “Samara, I know her, what happened to her touches me a lot,” Léa recalls. There are fights, it happens from time to time. But not to the point of putting people in a coma. Generally, college staff intervene quickly enough to prevent things from getting out of hand. »
The prosecution specifies that it had not “received reports of acts of harassment” before the tragedy. Although it seemed like the intimidation had been going on for several days, at least. “In this establishment, several disciplinary measures have been taken for situations of harassment,” underlines the rector, Sophie Méjean. They are processed. It may be that certain situations of which we do not know all the dimensions can be better handled. Harassment is a complex, unacceptable phenomenon…”
“My son has been harassed for two years”
In this establishment, around thirty cases of harassment were reported to the administration last year. If that of Samara was not one of them, this is not the case of Mourad’s child, also educated in the establishment. “My son has been harassed for two years,” explains the father. We explained it to the establishment who told us that they would do what was necessary, but that didn’t change anything. What happened with this student is shocking, but unfortunately, I am not surprised. We told them: “What are you waiting for to act? That there is a murder?’”
This Thursday morning, the students resumed classes according to the usual schedule, under the watchful eye of four police officers and a handful of journalists. “The listening cell has been in place since Wednesday,” specifies the rectorate. It will continue to be deployed in the establishment to collect the words of students and staff who express the need. She will remain active including during school holidays. »