the poignant testimony of Carlos' widow at the trial of the double homicide for a stolen motorcycle

She took the stand supported by her lawyer and “friend”, as she describes it, Me Sandrine Parise-Heideiger. Succeeding several relatives and family members who, with great emotion, had evoked the memory of Carlos, “a very generous man”, “having his heart on his sleeve” and not “bearing injustice”, his woman, Pauline, heaves a slight sigh before speaking on this fourth day of hearing before the Val-d'Oise Assize CourtWednesday January 15, 2025.

With admirable strength and dignity, she looks back on this evening of April 1, 2021 during which “(her) world collapsed” after learning of the death of Carlos, her husband and father of their 5-year-old granddaughter. Aged 33, the young dad was killed by a bullet to the heart during a brawl which broke out on the evening of April 1, 2021, Marcouville in Pontoise (Val-d'Oise).

This followed thepunitive expedition carried out a few moments earlier in the neighborhood in order to retrieve a fly motocross. At the wheel of a van, Bryan P. did not hesitate to hit the young man driving his two-wheeler, Driss, 21, who would die from his injuries. A double homicide for which Bryan P., aged 27 today, has been on trial since Friday January 10, 2025, before the Val-d'Oise Assize Court.

“My daughter is afraid of losing me, like she lost her father”

A trial “testing, but important as a victim”, says Pauline. However, she in no way expected this audience to help her grieve. “We never mourn the loss of a person we love, we learn to live with it,” continues the mother who confides that for five days “my daughter has been crying morning and evening, she is afraid of losing me, like She lost her father.”

On the evening of the tragedy, she was at home in Osny. Carlos had gone to a barbecue with friends in the Marcouville district where he grew up.

I had discussions with him, he told me he wouldn't be back late. But at 8:30 p.m., his best friend calls me and says “you have to come. Carlos took a bullet, it's serious. I tell him it's as bad as April Fool's Day. I didn't believe it until someone else told me the same thing. My world is falling apart. I call my parents to ask them to come home. My legs are trembling, my breath is taken away. My daughter is next to me, she hears everything. She asks me what's going on, I tell her I don't know. My mother accompanied me to the emergency room of Pontoise hospital where I was told that no gunshot wounds had been admitted. I come out, I look at the sky, and there I understand that the love of my life is gone. I called my lawyer, she confirmed to me a few minutes later that there was one dead and one seriously injured.

In the meantime, Pauline contacted the police. He was told that it was impossible to communicate these elements to him by telephone. Back home, Ricardo, Carlos' best friend, shows up at her home. “He tells me it’s over. I called Samu who confirmed his death. I go to the Cergy police station where I am received by a police officer who apologizes and explains to me that she was ordered not to tell me. It's very hard for me. The day Carlos died, a part of me left. »

“I am stunned by the lack of respect of the accused”

Since this tragedy, this merchant from Pontoise, who is followed by a psychologist just like her granddaughter, now 9 years old, has tried to rebuild herself with the support of her family, her own and her deceased husband, and her family. friends who have been present in large numbers in the Assize Court room since the opening of the trial. “I thank them all, I’m proud of them,” says Pauline.

While she mentions that she felt “a lot of apprehension and fear” before the hearing, she revealed that she was “stunned by the lack of respect from the accused and his family who put themselves in the position of victims. But they didn't lose anyone.

I had to bury my husband. I had to choose his clothes, his coffin, know if I put his wedding ring in it or not. I don't wish what we're going through on anyone. I think of the two mothers who lost a son, a daughter who lost her dad, relatives who lost a brother…”

In the dock, Bryan P. remains impassive. Throughout the investigation, the accused denied having wanted the deaths of his two victims. Concerning Driss, he explained that he simply wanted to stop the motorcycle, which was however contradicted by a witness. As for the murder of Carlos, he confided that he had “fired into the crowd” with his 6.35 caliber semi-automatic pistol during the brawl in order to save his father who was being beaten. The accused was to be heard on these facts this Thursday morning.

Follow all the news from your favorite cities and media by subscribing to Mon Actu.