The facts date back to March 2015. The three accused were looking, at the home of a couple from Alésien, for a safe capable of containing €100,000. They are on trial in Nîmes from this Monday, December 2.
From this Monday and for three days, Florent Violette, 30 years old, Joris Garcia, 30 years old, and Guillaume Lonczkor, 28 years old, are on trial before the Gard Assize Court, in Nîmes. They must answer for attempted extortion with a weapon.
The case dates back to Sunday March 15, 2015, around 8:30 p.m. Three individuals entered the property of a couple of traders from Alès. The fence was cut with a hatchet, found on the scene by investigators. The alarm goes off. The husband approaches his front door. In the hallway, he hears three bangs and the door being kicked in. He found himself face to face with three individuals, gloved, hooded, one of whom was armed with a shotgun.
Five 12 gauge cases are found by police
The weapon bearer shouts at him: “Give me your money! If you don't give it to me, we'll kill you!” While the husband is kept at bay, the wife grabs a knife from the kitchen and rushes towards the burglars, weapon in hand. She threatens an individual: “I’m going to crash you.” This intervention puts the robbers to flight. To cover their retreat, the armed man allegedly fired at least once in the direction of the victims.
Judicial police investigators found five 12 gauge cases in the garden. DNA research on the cartridges made it possible to identify Florent Violette. Joris Garcia's DNA appears on the tool that was used to cut the fence.
The confessions of the accused
Telephone analyzes make it possible to trace it back to Guillaume Lonczkor. If at first, the three accused fiercely denied their participation in the attack, Joris Garcia was the first to break down during his custody in February 2016. In the proceedings, he admitted his participation in the facts. Soon followed by Guillaume Lonczkor. Florent Violette only confirmed his presence at the scene of the attack in June. The versions of the accused are generally identical and correspond to the statements of the civil parties.
An important point will, however, need to be clarified during the debates: the moment when the shootings occurred. The victims claim to have heard explosions before the robbers entered, while the latter claim to have fired shots during their escape. In any case, a shot impact measuring 5 cm in diameter was noted on the door of a cupboard, and the entrance door was riddled with pellets.
