“Very great violence”, the chilling reconstruction of the professor’s murder in court

Monday November 4, 2024 marked the opening of the trial into the murder of Samuel Paty in which eight people are on trial at the Paris Special Assize Court. As a reminder, this history and geography professor was violently murdered on October 16, 2020 by a young radical Islamist near the Bois-d'Aulne college in Conflans-Sainte-Honorine (Yvelines).

A scene from a “very great violence” attended, this Thursday, November 7, 2024, by all the stakeholders in the trial during a chilling reconstruction of the murder of the teacher. “There were 14 minutes between the exit of Samuel Paty from the college where he taught and the neutralization of (the killer) Abdoullakh Anzorov. At no time did Anzorov seem to lose his composure,” said an investigator from the anti-terrorist unit, as reported by our colleagues at BFMTV. The circumstances of the attack are described by an investigator from the anti-terrorist sub-directorate (Sdat).

Samuel Paty: 14 stab wounds

On video surveillance images, we can see Samuel Paty leaving his establishment with a hood on his head. Behind him, a student walks. Then a figure dressed in black appears and walks “with an energetic and determined step” towards the teacher. “It’s Abdoullakh Anzorov”specifies the investigator, before explaining how the man passes the schoolgirl and signals her to leave before taking out a knife and rushing at the college professor.

While the teenager, panicking, flees, she has time to hear screams: “God is great!”. Still according to the story of our colleagues, it was 4:54 p.m. when Abdoullakh Anzorov just beheaded Samuel Paty. The investigator says that a witness passing by in a car heard the man astride Samuel Paty shout: “He insulted the Prophet!”. The autopsy revealed 14 stab wounds on the professor's body, according to the investigator.

Samuel Paty: the assassin shot dead ten minutes after the murder

The analyzes did not make it possible to know whether Samuel Paty had been beheaded during his lifetime or not. “The decapitation took place just before or just after death, without this being able to be determined”, specifies the investigator. The bladed weapon, a 35 cm knife, was found a few meters from the crime scene. A close-up photo shows Samuel Paty “belly against the ground”, “the head separated from the body”, “to the left of the body”in the court of justice.

During the rapid intervention of the police, Abdoullakh Anzorov used a semi-automatic air-powered handgun to shoot at the police before being shot dead. “Nine passages of ballistic projectiles were noted on the body of Abdoullakh Anzorov, five of which were found in his body”details the investigator. The police pronounced the assassin dead at 5:04 p.m. This Friday, November 8, 2024, the family of Samuel Paty must testify.

A journalist passionate about social issues and current affairs, Hugo puts his pen at the service of information. Interested in all themes, from the impact of artificial intelligence on…