The public prosecutor of Marseille, Nicolas Bessone, gave a press conference this Tuesday in which he discussed the circumstances of the death of Nicolas Dumas, on Halloween evening
On the night of Thursday to Friday, November 1, Nicolas Dumas, 22, was fatally shot during a shooting in front of the Saint-Péray nightclub, in Ardèche. A rugby player loved by all, he leaves his parents Glawdys and Eric in dismay and anger. This is the second time that death has struck within the Romans-Péage club, after the death of Thomas, in Crépol, during a village festival. The suspected shooter, aged 19, was arrested Monday November 4 in Marseille on a deal point linked to the DZ mafia. During a press conference, the public prosecutor of Marseille, Nicolas Bessone returned to the circumstances of the tragedy.
The alleged shooter, a 19-year-old Italian, and the driver, a 23-year-old man who brought him in front of the Seven, the nightclub where this tragedy took place on November 1 in Saint-Péray (Ardèche), both was indicted for murder and attempted murder by an organized gang and placed in pre-trial detention. They both admitted the facts with which they are accused. The shooter, however, clarified that he “did not want to take anyone’s life” and that he had only been recruited, on social networks, for “an act of intimidation”.
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Before fatally wounding Nicolas Dumas with a bullet in the head, the shooter had hit two other people, one of the bouncers of the nightclub and a customer who was also waiting to enter the establishment which was organizing a special evening on the occasion Halloween. The weapon could be a Magnum 357 revolver, according to Mr. Bessone.
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The two men told investigators that they did not know each other and had never seen each other before meeting up for this operation.
Extortion remains the preferred hypothesis
“The motive could be, although I cannot tell you with certainty today, a desire to extort this night establishment […] it is a privileged hypothesis at this stage,” indicated the prosecutor.
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“If there is no evidence at this stage to suggest that this is a question linked to drug trafficking, the question remains as to why and the intention of these intimidation maneuvers in front of this nightclub,” a- he added.
And to specify that for the moment “no element allows us to link (this drama) to the DZ Mafia”, the clan which now dominates drug trafficking in France's second city.
On the other hand, the magistrate recalled that “the mode of operation, the elements of the motor vehicle, the fact that we found and questioned the shooter on a Bricarde deal point naturally brings us back to Marseille”.
The driver of the vehicle, a Renault Scénic stolen at the end of October in Marseille and then found charred, was also arrested on November 4, two hours later, at his home in Cavaillon (Vaucluse). He was known for drug violations and domestic violence.
