The trial of ten demonstrators prosecuted for entering the Arc de Triomphe on December 1, 2018 began on Monday March 22.

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CELINE BREGAND / SIPA

  • More than 400 people were arrested at the end of "Act III" of "yellow vests" organized on December 1, 2018 in Paris.

  • Three years later, only ten people appear before the Paris Criminal Court for "aggravated damage" and "break-in".

  • The damage caused by the intrusion into the Arc de Triomphe, a symbolic monument of the capital, was estimated at one million euros.

At the Paris Criminal Court,

On December 2, 2018 from Argentina, Emmanuel Macron had promised that the culprits would be “identified and held accountable for their acts before justice”.

That day, the images of the degradation and looting committed inside and outside the Arc de Triomphe on the sidelines of "act III" of the "yellow vests" in Paris, made the rounds of the newspapers. televised.

The political class, it collectively expresses its "indignation".

A total of 412 people will be arrested and 378 of them placed in police custody.

Three years later, only ten people appear from this Monday for "aggravated damage" and "break-in".

Eight young men and two women who are accused, in particular, of having entered this historic monument illegally.

Different degrees of responsibility

This Monday afternoon at the opening of the trial, seven of the ten defendants face the President of the 15th Chamber, Sonia Lumbroso.

Hands crossed in front of them or behind their backs, the defendants listen to the magistrate describe, with supporting photos and videos, the findings made by the investigators at the end of the demonstration.

“The shop and the museum inside the Arc were destroyed, looted.

Several paintings, sculptures and works of art have been soiled, ”she lists.

"Not very polite inscriptions with regard to the President of the Republic are found on one of the pillars of the Arc", she continues.

Inside the monument, the magistrate evokes a “scene of desolation”.

The cost of the rampage is then evaluated at one million euros.

If the president wishes to depict "the extent of the damage" committed, she reminds the court that the ten defendants are "not responsible for all of this destruction".

An important nuance given the diversity of the profiles of the defendants who appear this week and their different degrees of involvement.

"It was total anarchy"

Mehdi B. is the first to take the stand.

From the outset, he admits having gone to Place de l'Etoile to demonstrate.

“Peacefully,” he says.

Arrived around 4 pm at the scene, he describes: “It was total anarchy, nothing was organized.

There were groups which degraded, the police barred the accesses, there was more possibility of leaving the place ”.

At first, he explains that he was stationed under the Arc to protect the tomb of the Unknown Soldier: “We knew what it represented, people wanted to degrade it, we pushed them back”.

Tear gas was then launched in the direction of the crowd posted near the monument.

Mehdi B., like one of the other defendants, claims to have rushed inside the Arc to escape the irritating gases: "It was a survival instinct".

Like him, Valentin N., 23 years old at the time of the incident, described a “movement of panic”: “When the tear gas arrived, we followed inside (…) we went back to protect ourselves”.

At the entrance, however, a prefabricated building is completely destroyed and the damage is largely visible, recalls Sonia Lumbroso.

“Did you know that it was forbidden to enter the building?” She asks.

"I had not noticed", ensures Valentin N. "I saw that everything was degraded, but I did not know that it was prohibited", defends Mehdi B. For this intrusion, the latter incurs a simple fine.

Valentin N. is facing a ten-year prison sentence.

In question, four postcards stolen from the souvenir shop inside the Arc.

“I was in the heat of the moment,” he pleads.

"The day when the heat of the action will appear in court, we will have a lot of things to reproach him with," lashes the president.

"I was lost in my head"

Melvyn A. didn't stop at a few postcards.

On images broadcast by BFMTV, we see him punching a door of the monument several times using a fire extinguisher.

One of his friends, a minor at the time of the events and who will be tried later, takes part in kicking.

At the time, Melvyn A. did not know anything about the movement of the "yellow vests", indicates his lawyer: "When you were asked what the" yellow vests "were, you said:" My mother she did not even car, it's a fuel story "".

Informed of the ongoing overflows on the Champs-Elysées via the Snapchat social network, he still decides to go there.

"To see what was going on," he stammers at the bar.

Like Mehdi B. and Valentin N., he evokes the group effect: “Everyone did anything, I was trained”.

His voice uncertain, he adds "I was lost in my head (…) it was anarchy, it was too crazy".

Our series on "yellow vests"

An answer that does not convince the President of the 15th Chamber: “It could have scared you, you could have left?

But no you say to yourself: "It's horrible, we will participate with them!"

".

High school student in final year with a clean criminal record and aged 18 at the time of his arrest, he was remanded in custody as part of the proceedings.

“It was very, very hard, it was a shock,” he says, adding that the two months spent in detention gave him “time to think”.

On the bench of the civil party, the lawyer of the association

Stop the looting of the archaeological and historical heritage (Happah) asks: "The smashed Marseillaise, the bust of Napoleon beheaded, what inspires you?

".

"Disgust, I regret what I did", finally let go the young man.

The hearing is scheduled to continue until March 26.

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  • Justice

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  • Emmanuel Macron

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