The atypical profile of the oldest accused in the 2015 bombings trial

The oldest accused - basically in this drawing - was heard at length on Tuesday by the special assize court -

• Michel Catino, 68, is the oldest accused in the January 2015 bombings trial. He is being prosecuted for criminal terrorist association.

• He is suspected of having participated in the transport of arms and of having been in contact with Ali Riza Polat, the only accused present to appear for complicity. 

• He faces twenty years of criminal imprisonment. 

At the special assize court in Paris,

Michel Catino's life has always been punctuated by his addiction to gambling.

“I just had that in mind.

I needed money to play, it was my hobby, ”summarizes this 68-year-old Belgian with a strong accent.

“Once, I spent five days playing, without eating or sleeping,” he insists.

The man was indeed condemned by the justice of his country for having illegally hosted gaming tables in one of the cafes he once ran, but it is for a matter of a completely different ilk that he appears before the special assize court of Paris in charge of judging the attacks of January 2015. The oldest accused, thin glasses on his nose and graying hair falling to the back of his neck, is suspected of having participated in the delivery of used weapons during the attacks.

Returned for "criminal terrorist association", he faces twenty years of criminal imprisonment.

Straight like an “i” in the box, his hands firmly attached to the bar, the man immediately recognizes him: he did carry a bag, one evening in November 2014, between the Paris region and the suburb of Charleville- Mézières.

“I was offered money to play, I accepted,” he explains simply.

However, he claims that he was unaware of the contents of this bag, the latter having been directly deposited and recovered in the trunk of his vehicle.

"You are not wondering what it contains?

», The first assessor is surprised.

" Not at all.

Just as he denies having had any links with Saïd Kouachi who resided in this commune in the Ardennes, which the investigation confirmed.

“This is the first time I've heard of terrorism.

I have never heard that word in my life, and yet I have come a long way, ”he insists.

Nanny and carrier

At the time, to fuel his gambling addiction, Michel Catino agreed to render "small services", in particular on behalf of his long-time friend, Metin Karasular, at his side in the box.

Some legal, or almost, like when he gives her a "helping hand" in his car garage, others less so.

On several occasions, the sixty-year-old plays the "nanny" and keeps drugs in his apartment on behalf of his friend.

He also keeps two weapons for himself, "an old pump-action shotgun and an old rifle," he explains.

And to clarify: “Metin asked me to hold them.

He is afraid that he will be robbed in the garage, at home there are his children.

I live alone.

The latter, in poor condition, will nevertheless not be part of the arsenal of terrorists from

, Montrouge and Hyper Cacher.

In November 2014, Michel Catino went to the Ardennes on the advice of Metin Karasular: two of his contacts, Miguel Martinez and Abdelaziz Abbab, also accused, "have something to offer [him]".

Five hundred euros to bring back a bag from Paris.

Michel Catino complies and goes directly to Grigny where Ali Riza Polat, the only accused to appear for complicity in crimes, awaits him in an industrial zone.

The two have already crossed paths at Metin Karasular on several occasions.

The latter is, in fact, in charge of reselling a car - a Mini - bought thanks to credits contracted by Hayat Boumedienne, wife of Amedy Coulibaly.

But the sale is dragging on and the money - which was probably used to finance the attacks - is long overdue.

So that during December, it is the future terrorist who makes the trip.

“We were leaving when Mr. Polat arrived with a black man.

I say hello to Mr. Polat and I say hello to the other.

Polat says he wants the money from the Mini, ”remembers Michel Catino only.

"Religion, I don't know anything, you have to tell you how?

"

If he does not recognize himself in the description of "handyman" of Metin Karasular that several witnesses have drawn up of him, it is difficult to perceive Michel Catino otherwise when he describes his relationship with the accused.

Discussions between Ali Riza Polat and Metin Karasular are in Kurdish, just as he is kept away from discussions on the sale of the car.

“There are people who came to testify that they gave up arms, people who were the mentors of the Kouachi….

they were free.

I do not understand how French justice works!

“, He laments in the box, referring to several witnesses interviewed in recent weeks.

The Advocate General, just like the lawyers for the civil parties, however, have a hard time believing this portrait of a second-class trafficker.

In addition to the transport of weapons, lawyers are surprised by these repeated calls to several defendants a few minutes after the

attack

.

And why did he part with his “mobile phone” after the fact?

Assures him to have discovered the attacks on January 9, after a whole night spent at the casino, and to have left his phone several days in his car.

After more than three hours of questions, Michel Catino gets annoyed when the lawyers for the civil parties question him about his religious practice.

"Religion, I don't know anything, how can I say it, in Italian?

The investigating judges nevertheless considered that he could not ignore the radicalization of some of his interlocutors and could therefore suspect their intentions, which he has repeatedly denied.

“In poker, I bluff a lot.

But here I do not know how to bluff, ”he insists.

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