On the stand, Nicolas K. explained that he had not wanted to “threaten anyone”, but had wanted to “take revenge” on the Iranian authorities, “terrorists” in his eyes. The man of Iranian origin who entered the consular section of the Iranian embassy on Friday afternoon, wearing a vest with fake explosives, was sentenced Monday April 23 to 10 months in prison with reprieve. Aged 61 and living in France for many years, the individual was also sentenced by the criminal court to an obligation of care, a ban on carrying a weapon and a ban on appearing at the consulate, as well as in the 16th arrondissement. from Paris where the events took place.
The day before the events, “I was informed that my cousin had been hanged in Iran, and that my sister had been arrested,” said Nicolas K., who lives in the Paris suburbs and regularly participates in demonstrations by Iranian opponents. in Paris. The defendant, who speaks correct French but suffers from hearing problems, was appearing for “death threats” and “premeditated violence”.
According to witnesses, whose story was recounted at the hearing by the president of the court, he had “dropped Iranian flags”, and repeated “I want to die, I am exhausted”. The intervention of negotiators from the Rapid Intervention Brigade (BRI) finally allowed the arrest of the sixty-year-old, who himself left the building without his vest.
An “isolated act”
According to an expert psychiatrist, he suffers neither from an alteration nor from an abolition of his discernment. In court, however, he often appeared confused, engaging in long digressions on the political situation in Iran. “That doesn’t interest me, we have to stick to the facts,” the president retorted.
For the representative of the prosecution, the facts prosecuted do not relate to an “act of political resistance”, but rather to “common law offenses”. “It is the isolated act of a person who is certainly not doing well, but who has no legitimacy to take revenge on anyone,” insisted the prosecutor, who requested a year in prison, including four months suspended, and the remainder adjustable under an electronic bracelet. Despite the artificial nature of the weapons, the people present at the consulate were terrorized, which was the defendant’s goal, according to the magistrate: “Obviously they thought ‘he’s going to blow everything up, we’re all going to die’ “.
On the contrary, for the defendant’s lawyer, Me Louise Hennon, none of the witnesses interviewed were afraid, most immediately saw that the grenades were fake, and one of them even spoke of a “spectacle”. according to her. In addition, the opponent, who “dedicated his life to the fight against the Iranian regime”, was “calm and courteous” and committed “no beginning of an act of violence”, nor uttered any threat , underlined Me Hennon. She pleaded for acquittal, also arguing that a conviction would result in a “disproportionate interference in the freedom of expression” of her client.
In October, Nicolas K. had already been sentenced by the Paris criminal court for setting fire to tires in front of the gate of the Iranian embassy in the same place. For these facts, he received an eight-month suspended prison sentence, and appealed. His new trial, initially scheduled for Monday before the Court of Appeal, was postponed until June 24.
This case concerns an “individual act” on the part of a man “who unfortunately suffers from mental disorders”, commented Monday from Tehran the spokesperson for the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Nasser Kanani, during a conference Press. Given the “repetition” of these incidents, Iran expects the French government and justice system to “take the necessary measures” to ensure a “safe environment” for Iranian diplomatic personnel in Paris, he added. .