Aboubakar Cissé’s family will file a complaint for terrorist murder

Thursday 01st May 2025 03:31 PM

Relatives of Aboubakar Cissé, killed in a mosque in the Grand-Combe (Gard) on April 25, believe that it is a terrorist act and announce their intention to file a complaint in this sense on Friday.

The assassination of Aboubakar Cissé, at the Mosque de la Grand-Combe, a terrorist act? “Yes”, support lawyers for the victim’s family: they do not understand that anti -terrorist justice does not take up this investigation. So, they decided to file a complaint this Friday, May 2. A complaint with constitution of civil party which will be filed with the dean of the investigating judges, in Paris. Guillaume Biet, head of the Police-Justice service in RMC, learned about the content of this complaint.

The older brother of Aboubakar Cissé, Yoro Cissé (left), surrounded by other relatives and politicians at a press conference in the National Assembly, April 29, 2025. © Thomas Samson / AFP

The suspect faces life imprisonment in all cases

So what are family lawyers say? To support their approach, the lawyers first highlight the “rare violence”, “the exceptional barbarism” of the assassin who was hard on his victim, in a mosque and who filmed his gesture, then broadcast the images. In summary, according to them, this crime is an “sole proprietorship” in order to intimidate by terror, that is, the legal definition of a terrorist act.

But the magistrates of the national anti -terrorist prosecution, they do not have the same analysis: because no clue, for the moment, connects this assassination to a terrorist ideology. The case is therefore currently qualified as “aggravated murder” because it was premeditated and committed due to the religion of the victim. This means that the suspect faces life imprisonment in all cases, whether or not this affair is qualified as a terrorist.

The complaint will be examined by the dean of the investigating judges of the Paris court. After analysis, he will decide: either to leave the case to the current judge of Nîmes (in which case, the lawyers will appeal), or to open a new judicial instruction for assassination of a terrorist nature and will appoint an investigating judge in Paris, specializing in anti -terrorism. The suspect is still in Italy, while waiting for his very next extradition to France, in the coming days.