Paris (AFP)
Rapper MHD, implicated in an investigation into a deadly assault in mid-2018 during a brawl between gangs in Paris, was refused placement on an electronic bracelet and was kept in pre-trial detention, AFP learned judicial source Thursday.
The popular self-proclaimed inventor of the "afro-trap", a mixture of rap and African music, known in particular for a hit to the glory of PSG, has been in pre-trial detention since January 17, 2019, following his indictment for "intentional homicide". He disputes any participation in the facts.
Thursday, the investigative chamber of the Paris Court of Appeal decided according to this judicial source the continued detention of this 25 year old man. His lawyers contested a refusal at first instance of a less restrictive measure, the house arrest under electronic bracelet.
"This decision is incomprehensible in light of the progress of the investigations and the exit project presented by MHD. He remains determined to fight to prove his innocence," said his lawyer, Archibald Celeyron.
On the night of July 5 to 6, 2018, Loïc K., 23, was hit by a car, beaten and stabbed in the 10th arrondissement of the capital, during a settling of scores between rival bands of the 10th and 19th arrondissements. A dozen people worked on him, a scene filmed by a witness from a window. The man died very quickly from his injuries.
The rapper's car from the 19th arrondissement, a recognizable black Mercedes, is the one that made it possible to overthrow the young man, even if several actors in the file ensure that the rapper lent it very regularly.
At least three witnesses formally identified MHD, according to elements of the investigation of which AFP was aware.
To date, a dozen men are under investigation, but two important people in the file are distinguished by their absence: a man whose DNA is present on a knife stained with blood and recovered from the scene of the murder is nowhere to be found.
On the other hand, the main witness who recognized MHD from the start among the attackers failed in each of the confrontations requested by the rapper.
The investigating judge in charge of judicial information is trying to reconstruct the precise sequence of the evening, and in particular to understand if this murder served as a reprisal for a violent intrusion into the home of one of the defendants, more early in the evening.
© 2020 AFP