A recent report from the Foundation for Research on Administrations and Public Policies (iFRAP), published in 2024, reveals an alarming practice: a significant proportion of Algerian migrants in an irregular situation present themselves under a false Moroccan identity to escape French procedures. expulsion. This phenomenon, observed in several investigations, notably those carried out by the Paris public prosecutor’s office in 2020, exposes a repetitive pattern in which many Algerians, arrested for various offenses, invoke a Moroccan nationality, thus complicating their identification by the French authorities.
Analysis of judicial files and arrests shows that, of the 8,250 foreigners of Algerian nationality arrested for crimes in 2023, around 27% of them declared, during interrogations, to be of Moroccan nationality. This proportion is particularly high in sensitive urban areas, notably in the Paris region, in Marseille and in certain cities in the North, where the figures reveal that the use of false declarations of Moroccan identity is more frequent.
The choice to claim to be Moroccan can be explained by several factors. “Repatriation procedures to Algeria are often faced with diplomatic obstacles. Although the two countries have signed readmission agreements, the Algerian authorities collaborate little in the implementation of these measures. Between 2023, 2,562 Algerian nationals had been expelled. Thus, by hiding their real nationality, Algerian illegal immigrants try to slow down, or even prevent, their expulsion.
The Paris prosecutor’s office has expressed doubts about the individual nature of this practice. A study of the files in 2023 revealed that some of the individuals interviewed, without a criminal record in France, nevertheless had precise knowledge of the administrative flaws and legal subtleties surrounding expulsions. There is also evidence to suggest that this practice could have been suggested by structured networks active in helping irregular migrants.
If some observers evoke the hypothesis of an implemented strategy, others suggest that this trend could be the result of a direct or indirect process of organized networks, or even of an orientation orchestrated upstream. Several testimonies collected by iFRAP report instructions received at the transit stages encouraging Algerian migrants to use Moroccan nationality to avoid expulsions.
The figures show that this identity theft has significant repercussions on the perception of delinquency in France. This calls for an institutional response and improved methods of identity verification. In a parliamentary report, several deputies recommended the establishment of reinforced biometric procedures, including increased collaboration between French immigration services and Moroccan consulates, to more effectively detect false declarations of nationality.
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