A major security system deployed, around sixty accredited journalists, reinforced controls… this Monday, the Bouches-du-Rhône assize court had the air of a fortress. “Is this for a Corsican trial?”, questions an insightful lawyer on the footbridge of the Palais Monclar. Until July 3, the court is examining the case of the assassination of Jean-Luc Codaccioni and Antoine Quilichini on December 5, 2017 in the parking lot of Bastia-Poretta airport. A “spectacular” assassination, against a backdrop of revenge between different factions of the Sea Breeze criminal gang, according to the prosecution.
Out of the norm in several respects, the trial required the enlargement of the accused’s box in the courtroom, inside which eight men and one woman took their places, under good escort and in good humor contrasting with the seriousness of the facts and the penalties incurred. Pale face framed by long auburn hair, Cathy Châtelain, divorced Sénéchal, slides her shy figure wrapped in a purple vest at one end of the box.
