DThe screams tear through the night. This May 10, 2022, around 2 a.m., a Biarritz municipal police patrol was called for a brawl between homeless people, in the bends of the Côte des Basques. When it comes to fighting, the officials find it horrifying. Piotr, stained with blood, suffers martyrdom. 15% of his body, including his head, was burned. Without the intervention of the emergency services, he would have passed away. Two and a half years later, the trial of his alleged attacker opens this Thursday, November 28. For two days, Anthony Baumgartner, 24, will answer for attempted murder before the Pyrénées-Atlantiques Assize Court, in Pau.
Justice accuses him of having doused Piotr with methylated spirits, before lighting him on fire with a lighter. “My client firmly contests the facts and denounces the weakness of the testimony,” explains Me Bernard-Frank Macera. The victim changed his version several times, even admitting that he had not directly seen the person who sprayed him. »
Watered barbecue
That evening, reprobates gather on the pedestrian promenade. A dozen dispossessed people crowd around a manhole cover converted into a barbecue grill. Piotr plays chess with one of them. The ocean and the bottle for horizon. Some have been drowning their worries since the afternoon. For two years, the investigation worked to find some of them. To sort the true from the false in their anesthetized memories.
Piotr did not immediately understand that he had been burned by a flame. Doctors first thought it was acid. From the hospital, however, he designates “Antonio” as his executioner. A week before, he allegedly gave 20 euros to Anthony Baumgartner and a certain “Omar” who was never identified. They had to buy vodka. Their creditor never drank a single drop or saw the color of the note again. His bitterness had turned into insults. On the evening of the events, Anthony Baumgartner would have wanted to resolve the dispute.
A version confirmed by a certain “Bob”. His testimony is central. Heard several months later, he claimed to have seen the upper body and head of the victim on fire. In his presence, Anthony Baumgartner would have announced his intention to “burn” Piotr a few days before. The arrival of this Belgian homeless person in the investigation changed the victim's version.
Times-face
Piotr ended up accusing Bob of hitting him with a chain, before dousing him with flammable liquid and giving his lighter to Anthony Baumgartner. He explains “inferring” it without having seen it. This change of heart pushed the indictment to designate Bob as the main author of the facts. A total contradiction with its first version.
Until now, Anthony Baumgartner named “two young people” as the attackers. These strangers would have appeared to attack Piotr, before fleeing. No one else saw them. Anthony Baumgartner's “inconstancy, lies and inconsistencies” are noted by the investigating judge.
Psychiatrist and psychologist agree on his violence and his total intolerance to frustration. He himself claims to “start like clockwork”. His criminal record illustrates this. On the evening of the incident, he had been free for barely three months. The logical continuation of a tragic childhood. Placed at 6 years old, left school too early. The young Narbonnais has never worked. Its landmarks are those of the street.
Since 2022, Anthony has attempted suicide in prison. The young man went on hunger strike and was forced to hospital on several occasions. “He can’t stand confinement. And above all, he considers himself innocent,” explains Me Macera. The Assize Court will decide on Friday.
Without leaving a trace
Analysis of Piotr's t-shirt did not make it possible to formally identify the flammable product used. His jacket, which was on fire “like a torch” according to witnesses, was never found. Unlike the bottle of rubbing alcohol. The container had no fingerprints or usable traces. The prosecution must deal with the testimony. And their flaws.
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