one year later, the author of the fatal stabbing still not identified

One year ago today, on the night of November 18 to 19, 2023, young Thomas, 16, was killed by a stab during the Crépol ball in Drôme. A murder which followed a fight initiated by young people from the Monnaie district in Romans-sur-Isère, a nearby town. But a year later, there is still no certainty about the author of the fatal stabbing.

Despite a hundred witness interviews and the existence of several videos filmed at the end of the ball, investigators have not yet managed to identify the author of the fatal stabbing. Because the facts are very confused, says Maître Elise Rey-Jacquot, who defends two indictees. “The testimonies are fragile, especially when they are collected in these circumstances: it was an evening where most of the protagonists were alcoholic. It was extremely dark, it was late in the evening,” she explains.

A premeditated act?

“At this time, we are not in a position to give clear and detailed testimony of the events that occurred that day. On the other hand, if there is one thing that emerges from the investigation, it “We were absolutely not on a premeditated, coordinated and planned attack. What we are aiming for is more of a ballroom brawl which unfortunately degenerated in a tragic way,” adds Maître Elise Rey-Jacquot.

The feeling of Emmanuelle, one of the organizers of the ball, is exactly the opposite: “For us, it was something that was voluntary. It didn't happen on the line, no, it was voluntary, organized, they were numerous… When the police arrived, they had all fled. They organized their escape. So to do that, you have to have organized the rest…” she says. In any case, the judges, who specified that the investigation would last at least another year, did not accept the racist nature of the attack.