Central Brittany. Bosses of “house of horror” sentenced

On May 4, 2023, the Saint-Brieuc criminal court had looked into the rather sordid file of the shared house of Kerbochet has Plouguernével (Côtes-d’Armor), also called a “house of horror”. Given the complexity of this case and the number of defendants (eight), the decision was deliberated on September 14 and then postponed until this date. Thursday September 28, 2023.

The objective of this accommodation center, open since the beginning of the 2000s, was thewelcoming people in difficultywhether because of their age or a disability.

This center was managed by an association, to which the departmental council withdrew its reception approval in 2012, following various shortcomings noted. Despite this, residents continued to be welcomed there.

Forced labor and violence

THE accommodation and care conditions were quite pitifulthe staff was not trained and to top it off, the vulnerable residents were victims of violence. They were locked in their rooms at night, all of which had no bathroom or toilet.

Added to this daily abuse is work. Finally, “organized activities”, as the defendants declared during their custody.

In terms of activity, it involved going to cut wood in the forest, laying tiling at the home of a family member, doing masonry, weeding activities, etc.

And if these “organized activities” were not carried out correctly, These are blows that rained down on these residents.

Of the punches, slaps, cigarette burn marks were even observed on a “non-smoking” resident, who unfortunately no longer has the psychological capacity to explain himself.

One resident even lost a tooth following a punch. This house was managed by seven members of the same family. “The bosses”, as the residents call them.

Some offenses held, others not

If the offenses of abuse of weakness and endangering the lives of others were not upheld by the court, this jurisdiction has condemned the seven members of the same family for subjecting a vulnerable person to unworthy accommodation conditions. Only the eighth defendant, a simple employee, was acquitted.

The “Head” of the family, who, in addition to the mistreatment, was guilty of violence, receives 24 months suspended prison sentence. The other defendants were sentenced to 20 months’ suspended imprisonment.

Damages

The victims will be compensated for the moral damages suffered. for a total amount of 29,000 euros, those convicted will also have to pay an amount of 7,000 euros to cover the legal costs of their victims. A fine of 8,000 euros was imposed on the legal entity “Shared House of Kerbochet”.

The building, located in Rostrenen, in which the victims were housed, was confiscated, unlike that of Plouguernével, which was also the home of this unscrupulous family.

A definitive ban on carrying out any activity with vulnerable people is also pronounced against all the defendants, who will not be able to acquire property for the purpose of accommodation before a period of 10 years.

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