Marcel Vadella has been appearing since Tuesday before the Haute-Corse assizes for the murder and attempted murder of the Fadil brothers, on December 19, 2020. On the third day of the hearing, Jaoide Fadil, seriously injured that day, was invited to deliver his version of the facts.
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“What state of mind are you in today?” “Always the same since I lost my poor brother: in shock and sad“. Forest green jacket, trimmed beard and serious face, Jaoide Fadil responds laconically to the president of the Assize Court, Michel Bonifassi.
Scheduled for the day before, his hearing in this case – for which he appears as a civil party, injured by bullets this afternoon of December 19, 2020 – was postponed to this Thursday morning. This is due to the unavailability of Jaoide Fadil, to which the court decided, after some hesitation, to adapt.
“Did you know what image the bar you managed, “Le Typique”, had?“No,” the man replied.A number of people spoke of a nuisance. One person said that since the bar closed, the neighborhood has become quiet again“, note Michel Bonifassi. “Afterwards, it’s a bar, it’s not a nursing home. A bar makes noise“, returns Jaoide Fadil.
With his arms crossed and his tone dry, the thirty-year-old returns, guided by the questions of the president of the court, on the events which led to his injuries and the death of his brother, almost four years ago. His relations with Marcel Vadella – accused of murder and attempted murder in this case – were, however, before the facts, “in good shape“. “I considered him a friend“, even assures Jaoide Fadil.
The civil party recognizes the presence of debts owed to the owner of the bar that he managed with his brother. But rather than 8500 euros as Marcel Vadella indicates, he talks to him about 1500 euros. “But whether it’s for 1,500 or 10,000 euros, you can’t take someone’s life. There are procedures for this. [Marcel Vadella] comes from a family of police officers, he knows how to do it.“
A few days before the events, Jaoide Fadil admitted having received a voice message, via Whatsapp, from Marcel Vadella mentioning this problem. If he doesn’t remember the exact words,“he had disrespected me in the message, I had not appreciated“.
The assize trial opened this Tuesday, November 26.
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© Axelle Bouschon / FTV
On December 18, Marcel Vadella knocked on the curtain of “Typique” to ask to speak with the two brothers. Quickly, the tone rises. According to Jaoide Fadil, Marcel Vadella punched him first, which he dodged. A violent altercation then occurs, during which the fifty-year-old falls to the ground. “I had the upper hand“during the fight, confirms the civil party, who specifies that his brother, Jamal Fadil, then does not punch and instead tries to separate them. A woman finally separates them, and for Jaoide Fadil, the incident is then closed.
He assures us: once the argument was over, he did not threaten Marcel Vadella, and did not ask him for 80,000 euros in exchange for his departure from the premises with his brother. “Moi, he says, I’ve made mistakes in my life, I’ve been to prison. I’m not white as snow. I’ve done some stupid things, but I’ve never killed anyone.“
On December 19, Jaoide Fadil said he saw his brother, around 3 p.m., talking with the accused. “I go there, and I pull my brother by the arm and tell him, “We have nothing more to say to this tramp.”“
The situation degenerated almost immediately, he says: without any blow being struck, Marcel Vadella then took out his gun and shot him. “How far away were you at that point?“, asks the president. “I don’t know, 3 or 4 meters. I was pulling my brother’s arm and leaving.“
First he shot me, I fell, and then he shot my brother.
“Marcel Vadella says he shot your brother first“, note Michel Bonifassi. “No, that’s not true, he shot me first, I fell, and then he shot my brother. I see Jamal fall in front of me, I try to get up, and then he pulls me back on top.”
Hit twice, Jaoide Fadil says he had Marcel Vadella’s gun pointed at him, when a woman intervenes and allows him to flee further, where he contacts his ex-partner, parked nearby, to come and transport him at the hospital.
“For you, your brother, at this time, what state is he in?“, Michel Bonifassi asks him.For me, he is dead. I see him, he doesn’t move or anything.“
Me Mourad Battikh, lawyer for Jaoide Fadil.
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© Christian Giugliano / FTV
What about the blade that the accused claims to have seen in Jamal Fadil’s hands? “It’s a lie to try to have self-defense, tranche Jaoide Fadil. In his place, I would have done the same.“
“If on the day of the incident, Marcel Vadella had pointed his gun in the air, what would have been your reaction?“, the president continues. “I would have gone back and everyone would have gone about their lives. I wasn’t going to move forward and say kill me.”
Why did the thirty-year-old refuse to participate in the reconstructions organized by the investigators? “It was too hard for me. I didn’t want to meet [le regard de Marcel Vadella]. Am I going to look into the eyes of my brother’s killer, the one who wanted to kill me? Put yourself in my place. It’s too complicated.“
However, notes General Advocate Jean-Philippe Navarre, if Jaoide Fadil did not participate in the reconstructions in person, “he answered all the questions asked of him and participated in the investigation.“
Jaoide Fadil continue: “There isn’t a single day that I don’t think about it. I’m not well. We must not reverse the roles. The victim is me, it’s not [Marcel Vadella]. The murderer is him. We must not forget it. My poor brother was a very nice person. He didn’t deserve to die.”
Was Marcel Vadella in self-defense when he shot the Fadil brothers, killing one and seriously injuring the second? Was this an act that occurred at the time, or on the contrary, was there, in this case, premeditation on the part of the accused?
It is in particular these questions that the jurors will be asked to answer tomorrow, November 29. The pleadings of the civil parties are scheduled for the morning. The attorney general’s indictment will then be held, followed by the defense’s pleadings, before the court finally retires to deliberate.
The verdict is expected late Friday evening. Marcel Vadella faces up to 30 years of criminal imprisonment.
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