“I didn’t see him coming behind me. » Like dozens of others between February 2022 and April 2023, this septuagenarian was the victim of the theft of his bank card while he was withdrawing money from an automatic teller machine (ATM). In Bordeaux, Mérignac, Talence, Eysines, Castillon-la-Bataille, Sainte-Eulalie, people aged 56 to 91 were targeted using the same procedure.
Of the…
“I didn’t see him coming behind me. » Like dozens of others between February 2022 and April 2023, this septuagenarian was the victim of the theft of his bank card while he was withdrawing money from an automatic teller machine (ATM). In Bordeaux, Mérignac, Talence, Eysines, Castillon-la-Bataille, Sainte-Eulalie, people aged 56 to 91 were targeted using the same procedure.
Facts which required Hedi Zorgati, 46, to appear this Tuesday, May 7, 2024 before the Bordeaux criminal court for theft, but also for fraud. The bank cards have in fact been used more than 30 times in banks, tobacco shops, pharmacies, perfumeries or sports stores, thanks to the confidential codes memorized at the time of withdrawal by the holders. Sometimes their use was just an attempt because the opposition procedure was quick.
Already 17 convictions
By cross-checking, geolocation of the telephone and analysis of video surveillance images, the investigators were able to trace the defendant. They are certain he was not alone. At the hearing, one of the victims speaks of a “much bigger” man. But the forty-year-old only mentions “an acquaintance, but I won’t be able to tell you who it is”. He will therefore take responsibility alone.
“We chose on the fly. Not based on age. Depending on who was at the distributor »
Throughout the procedure, this man with a criminal record already blackened by 17 convictions denied the alleged facts. But this Tuesday, in front of his judges, he confesses. And he regrets it. ” I thought about. It’s time to tell the truth. ” All the truth ? He claims he didn’t look at the age of the victims. “We chose on the fly. Not based on age. Depending on who was at the ATM. »
He allegedly acted due to lack of money to buy a vehicle. In pre-trial detention for more than a year, he now wants to take control of his life. “Recognizing the facts only at the hearing is called strategy,” scolds deputy prosecutor Marc Ottomani. “In the box, he has the look and attitude of a child who has done something stupid. But these are not stupidities, they are crimes. »
Retention in prison
“The method is subtle,” recognizes the magistrate. But to one victim, he promised to “come back calibrated”. However, an alarm revolver was found at his home during a search, raising fears that he would carry out his threat. “He needed money, but it’s simple and dirty money,” concludes the magistrate who, keeping in mind “the trauma of the victims,” requires three years and continued detention.
“There was neither violence nor use of weapons, the majority did not realize the theft, so to speak of trauma is a bit of stretching the point,” retorts Me Allissia Pedron for defense. “There is certainly a damage but it is rather financial. The requisitions are neither proportionate nor adapted to his personality. We must give him the possibility of a sentence adjustment so that he can bounce back quickly. »
After deliberation, the court sentenced Hedi Zorgati to two years in prison and kept him in detention.
