A little less than twelve hours were enough to propel Christopher Sebaoun to the forefront of the national media scene, Friday November 22, 2024. Early in the morning, Europe 1 revealed that the municipal councilor (without label) of Tours (Indre-et-Loire) had been arrested the day before and placed in police custody as part of an investigation into drug trafficking.
Information quickly confirmed at The New Republic by the public prosecutor of Tours, Catherine Sorita-Minard.
A search of his home
The municipal councilor, delegated for questions relating to the Loire and the Cher, the preservation of river heritage and aquifer resources, was arrested by the gendarmerie at his home in Tours, Thursday November 21, 2024. The accommodation was then searched in his presence. Ecstasy pills were seized there.
Taken on camera in the presence of a dealer a few days earlier, he was described as “fairly regular consumer” by a judicial source. A frequency which would explain his placement in police custody, unlike other consumers, heard under the free hearing regime.
Elements strongly contested by Christopher Sebaoun, through his lawyer Me Dilek Yilmaz Kesim, who evokes a use “totally random and festive outside of its functions”.
Mentioned by a source close to the case, the consumption of ketamine – an analgesic used in veterinary medicine diverted into a recreational drug for its hallucinogenic effects – is also “totally refuted” by the chosen one, ” aware “ health risks of taking this product.
A “testing” police custody
The municipal team learned of his arrest through the media. The City of Tours then reacted via a press release: “In the event of indictment, the mayor will suspend Mr. Sebaoun from all his delegations for the duration of the investigation. » But a few hours later, the elected official finally saw his custody lifted.
According to our information, he left the Luynes gendarmerie brigade at the end of the afternoon with a criminal order for 2025 concerning drug use. Me Dilek Yilmaz Kesim insists that it is absolutely not “not concerned” et “neither involved” in drug trafficking.
The municipal councilor found his loved ones in the evening, “very tired” et “proven” by his placement in police custody. “It’s the first time, he didn’t expect all that”complete Me Dilek Yilmaz Kesim. His client has announced his intention to speak publicly next week.
At the same time, investigations by the Indre-et-Loire gendarmerie group continue. The other suspects were still in custody at the time of publication. The possibility of a trial according to the immediate appearance procedure, from Monday November 25, 2024, was then considered.
