The trial for the assassination of Samuel Paty continues. Before the Paris Special Assize Court, anti-terrorism investigators painted a damning portrait of Abdelhakim Sefrioui and Brahim Chnina, two of the main accused.
By publishing messages and then “deceptive and hateful” videos against the professor on social networks, “Abdelhakim Sefrioui and Brahim Chnina could not ignore making Samuel Paty a target,” believes an investigator from the anti-terrorism sub-directorate ( Sdat) identified as “Sdat 289”.
The activist journey of an Islamist preacher
Prosecuted for having participated “in the development and dissemination of videos presenting false or distorted information intended to arouse a feeling of hatred” against the professor beheaded by a young Chechen radical Islamist on October 16, 2020, the two men, aged 65 and 52, each face thirty years in prison.
Speaking via video, a first investigator, identified as “Sdat 172”, evokes the militant journey of Islamist preacher Abdelhakim Sefrioui, “sympathizer of the Muslim Brotherhood”. In 2004, he created the pro-Hamas collective Cheikh-Yassine (dissolved on October 21, 2020) participating in numerous pro-Palestinian demonstrations. “He does not hesitate to appear alongside personalities like Dieudonné”, continues the investigator who evokes the mobilization of the Islamist activist “on the question of wearing the veil”.
“Sdat 289” focuses on the days preceding the assassination. It all started on October 7, 2020. Brahim Chnina, father of the schoolgirl behind the false rumors about Samuel Paty, sent messages to his contacts relaying his daughter's lies about alleged discrimination against Muslim students. Chnina gives the address of the college and the name of the professor.
Two videos at the heart of the trial
Sefrioui is one of the first to contact him to denounce the “thug” professor. On October 8, the two men found themselves in front of the college. Sefrioui, who falsely presents himself as “representative of the imams of France”, threatens the director to organize a demonstration in front of the establishment while Brahim Chnina broadcasts a first video entitled Don't touch my children.
The video, lasting just over two minutes, is played to the audience. We see Chnina overplaying the indignation. “He’s being theatrical, close your eyes,” comments the investigator. On October 11, Sefrioui became a director to produce his own video entitled Islam and the Prophet insulted in a public college. These videos, according to “Sdat 289”, have become “viral”. “There is a desire to create a buzz.”
Our file on the assassination of Samuel Paty
Did the assassin Abdoullakh Anzorov see these videos? “It was through this media campaign that Anzorov learned of the existence of Samuel Paty and the college,” according to the investigator. On this point, the two main accused will be able to give their version during their interrogation next week.
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