It is 11:15 p.m. this Sunday, May 8, 2022 when an Audi RS6, 2 tons and 600 horsepower, melts at full speed into Avenue Bosquet. In front of her, the light is red, but that does not seem to deter her driver. However, a taxi in the right lane and a scooter in the left lane wait for the light to turn green and block his way.
The driver does not slow down. Worse, according to the accident report, “foot to the floor”, the driver will accelerate in the last meters, until reaching 120 km/h and crash into the rear of the taxi, then lose control of his vehicle and finally hit at a speed of 70 km/h the scooter violently threw its two passengers. Among them, Antoine Alléno, 24 years old – son of Yannick Alléno, a figure in French cuisine – will not survive. A major head trauma, despite wearing a helmet, will cause his death.
Eight years in prison required
Two and a half years later, on October 31, 2024, the trial of the driver of the vehicle, Francky Deplechin, was held at the Paris Court, in the presence of the Alléno family. He is accused of manslaughter. Eight years in prison were requested against him, as well as the cancellation of the suspect's driving license and a ban on taking a license for 10 years. On May 8, 2022, in a drunken state, Francky Deplechin, 25 years old at the time, stole a vehicle from the Coya restaurant, stealing the keys from the valet service.
What followed was a race at full speed around the Rue du Bac district, where according to the investigation, he almost knocked down at least 9 people, taking lanes in the wrong direction, and running 4 red lights. A few moments earlier, Antoine leaves his restaurant, Burger Père & Fils by Alléno, with Anisa, a colleague whom he decides to accompany home. He then crosses paths with Francky Deplechin and his relatives, tipsy, who are causing trouble. confused in front of the Coya. Antoine and Anisa go around, put on their helmets, start a Cityscoot scooter and hit the road.
Deliberation on November 28
A few hundred meters further, they will again cross paths with Francky Deplechin aboard the RS6 but this time it will be fatal for them. After getting out of his car, the young father from the traveling community tries to flee but is caught by an off-duty police commissioner. At the helm, Francky Deplechin, black down jacket on his back, repeats in a weak voice that he remembers nothing because of his state of intoxication that evening. Shortly after the tragedy, analyzes showed that he had 1.69 g of alcohol per liter of blood. A rate which cannot cause amnesia, protest the lawyers of the civil parties. “I apologize with all my heart, what I did is unforgivable, unforgivable, I recognize the fact of having stolen a car, I caused a tragedy, I recognize,” he says however in a barely perceptible voice.
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His son represented the future of the profession for Yannick Alléno
Emotion then takes over the room when members of the Alléno family take turns testifying. “I can tell you about it very clearly, I haven’t forgotten anything,” says Yannick Alléno. “I saw his blood on the ground, I forced the security cordon placed by the police. I lay down on my son, I screamed, I recognized him because of his striped socks,” the three-star chef recounts in tears on the stand. “On May 8, Antoine was at work, he was waiting for a customer who arrived a little late. He offered to bring his colleague back because putting a woman on the metro at that time is dangerous.
The weather was nice, Antoine was humming. You could tell he was happy. He represented the future of our profession, of our country,” confides the father who claims to no longer be able to sleep without medication since the tragedy. Many in the courtroom burst into tears, including lawyers. The three defendants also do not remain indifferent. Immobile, their faces hidden in their hands, they sob, curled up on themselves. “It’s a father’s job, to carry his family. My father the next day told me: ''listen, you have to stay straight'', that's what I'm doing today in front of you. », he says before giving the floor to Isabelle, Antoine's mother. “It’s a fight every morning,” she says in tears. “I lost everything on May 8, it was an earthquake. We are always afraid but we never imagine the worst. You arrive there and you see a white sheet. I still have Yannick’s cries in my mind.” The deliberations will take place on November 28.
