They claim that they were promised 2,500 euros to beat up an elected official in the street: three young men were sentenced on Friday January 19 in Seine-Saint-Denis, for the ambush carried out in December on Oriane Filhol, a deputy mayor from Saint-Denis. This attack by the councilor then shocked public opinion.
For “intentional violence against a person responsible for a public service mission”, the Bobigny criminal court imposed a prison sentence of eighteen months, six of which were suspended on probation, on a 22-year-old defendant.
Aged 18, the other two were sentenced to twelve months in prison, six of which were suspended, and eight months in prison suspended on probation. The court found that they did not know the victim’s status as an elected official.
“I am happy that it was able to happen and that the perpetrators were found guilty,” Oriane Filhol, sixth deputy mayor, told the press after the hearing. “I would like one day to have the final explanation (…) which will allow us to know why and who. There, these are the thugs who took for everyone, but the culprit who thought that and staged this attack has not yet been found,” she added.
At his side, the PS mayor of Saint-Denis, Mathieu Hanotin, welcomed the fact that a “clear message” had been sent: “When we hit elected officials, we are sanctioned, there are prison sentences that follow. apply. »
“Much less free, much less serene” since this attack
It was dark on the evening of December 20 when Oriane Filhol left a meeting in Saint-Denis of the board of directors of the social landlord Plaine commune habitat, of which she was vice-president. On returning home, the young woman realizes that two individuals are following her in the street.
She tries to lose them, changes path. Entering a private residence to which she knows the digital code, she starts running. But one of the two men catches her on the porch, sweeps her and hits her in the head before fleeing without saying a word. The aggression will cause turmoil in the political world.
Only slightly injured, at the helm, still shocked, Oriane Filhol says in a strangled voice that she feels “much less free, much less serene” since this attack, which occurred in a context of a national upsurge in violence against elected officials.
“I have the impression that I have been robbed of my freedom as a woman, of a person in the street, and also that I have been robbed of a little of my desire to commit as an elected official,” continues the thirty-year-old, between her tears.
A driver, two alleged perpetrators and an unknown sponsor
Entrusted to the specialized territorial security service due to the sensitivity of the case, the investigation resulted in the arrest on Wednesday of three young people from Saint-Denis, two suspected perpetrators and a driver. They were tried in immediate appearance on Friday afternoon.
The accused, with no criminal record, explain that they were promised 2,500 euros each by a sponsor who has not been identified to beat up the victim, who was pointed out to them in the street, and of whom they were unaware. identity.
“You just had to tap and say nothing, no stealing, nothing. Me for 2,500 euros I knock, even if it’s a woman. I didn’t pull her hair, nothing,” said Karl N. in police custody, who was the one who hit the elected official, who said little at the hearing.
Seeing that the target was “a girl”, Nader T., known as Le Nain because of his small size, preferred to stay behind at the last moment and not participate in the attack. Omerta hangs over the name of the sponsor – a “daron”, “a blédard”, “between 30 and 50 years old”.
In connection with an urban project which will “completely expose the deal point”
“If I tell the police about him, I know what he can do to me, ma’am. As I said [to an investigator], I know why I’m never going to reveal his first name, I know what he can do to me,” confides the 18-year-old young man.
Facing the criminal court, the mayor, Mathieu Hanotin, speculates a link with the urban renovation operation planned in the city of Francs-Moisins, a sensitive neighborhood from which two of the young people come. This project “will completely expose the point of the deal,” explains the councilor, in reference to drug trafficking.
According to the Ministry of the Interior, in 2023, attacks against elected officials increased by 15%, after an increase of 32% in 2022 (2,265 complaints and reports). “If these gentlemen are not happy with the mandate we are leading, there are new elections in 2026 and they can go and vote,” argued Oriane Filhol.