• On August 3, 2016, a fire broke out in an apartment on rue Fondary in the 15th arrondissement of Paris, causing a violent explosion.

  • The body of a woman managing an escort network in Paris, killed in the explosion, is found on the landing of the third floor.

    Two months later, investigators discovered the body of another escort, who worked for the first victim, who died the day before the fire, in the cellar of a building in the 18th arrondissement of Paris.

  • This Monday opens at the Paris Assize Court the trial of ten people, suspected of being involved to varying degrees in this double homicide.

On August 3, 2016, it was a little after 6 p.m. when a man, covered in soot, his arms and legs burned, ran away from a building in rue Fondary (Paris 15th), after a violent explosion. caused by a fire.

Minutes later, as they battle the flames, firefighters discover the body of a woman on the third floor landing, a tattoo "MP" inscribed on her stomach.

Nearly two months later, the body of a second woman, killed the day before the fire, was found in the cellar of another building a few kilometers away.

Investigators are quick to deal with the first body found.

In this case, ten people must be judged, from Monday, by the Assize Court of Paris.

A second homicide the day before the fire

The first body discovered on the landing is that of a 26-year-old Spaniard, Maria P., who manages a network of Parisian escort girls in this sublet apartment.

Investigators were also quick to identify the man who fled towards the La Motte-Picquet – Grenelle metro station, thanks to his fingerprints left on the gates.

This is Mourad B., a 29-year-old Algerian in an irregular situation, already well known to the police.

After several weeks of investigation, the 30-year-old was arrested on August 23 in a hotel on Avenue de Clichy (17th).

The latter, whose wounds have not been properly treated, is hospitalized in a burns unit.

For the investigators, it is a question of determining the bond of the man with the victim.

And it is telephone tapping that will give them the answer.

Over the course of the investigations, they trace the thread of the story and make the connection with a second homicide.

On September 23, 2016, the body of another woman was discovered in the cellar of a squat on rue Sauffroy (17th).

The young woman, in a fetal position, is wrapped in a cloth, a teddy bear in her arms.

According to the autopsy, she died the day before the fire from several stab wounds.

The latter, identified as Alixon OC, a 26-year-old Colombian, had just arrived in Paris and was working as an escort for Maria P.

“Finish” 

A few weeks earlier, at the end of July, an argument broke out between Maria P. and Alixon OC in the apartment on rue Fondary.

Believing that she is not paid enough, the Colombian threatens her pimp to call the police.

On the morning of August 2, fearing that the escort would report her, Maria P. called one of her friends, Moncef D., a 30-year-old taxi driver, with whom she had had a relationship for a year.

She explains to him that she has "a problem with a girl" and offers him 20,000 euros so that he "gets rid of" the young escort, he tells the investigators.

At the beginning of the afternoon, Moncef D. arrived at the foot of the building, according to video surveillance images from the street, joined a few minutes later by Kamel Z., a friend to whom he offered this "good plan ".

According to their account, the two men have no intention of killing Alixon OC

But the plan does not go as planned.

When they enter the apartment, they discover Maria P., covered in blood.

The pimp shows them a sheet, under which is the body of the escort, whom she would have killed herself with about thirty stab wounds, and simply declares “finish”, they relate.

Another escort, Léniska C., is present in the apartment at that time, according to them.

This Venezuelan prostitute, who is returned for complicity in homicide, has always denied her involvement.

At the sight of Alixon OC's body, the two men panic and flee.

But the Spaniard does not stop there.

The same evening, she asks Kamel Z. to help her move the corpse for 11,000 euros.

The henchman comes accompanied by his brother Nasser and one of his friends, the famous Mourad B., who will leave the building burned.

The risk of a "word for word" trial

If the body is now hidden, the apartment remains stained with blood.

In the early morning of August 3, the procurer offers a new mission to Mourad B. and Nasser Z for an additional 15,000 euros: to help him "clean up" the premises.

But despite the detergents, the traces of blood do not disappear, so Maria P. suggests setting fire to the apartment.

When Mourad B. spills gasoline, Nasser Z. flees.

At 6:13 p.m., the flame of the lighter caused a violent explosion, the blast killed Maria P. instantly.

The sequel is known.

Mourad B., seriously burned, survived, but fled immediately after the detonation.

For Me Béryl Brown, the lawyer for the family of Maria P., the risk is a "word against word" trial: "The victims are no longer there to defend themselves, everyone can go with their version", she explains.

"It's an ambivalent situation, she is both victim and suspect," she adds.

The lawyer hopes that the many expert reports ordered will be able to provide answers: “We hope to get as close as possible to the truth so that the family can mourn”.

The trial should make it possible to determine the exact role of Mourad B., Moncef D., Kamel Z. and Nasser Z., indicted for intentional homicide in an organized gang with premeditation, concealment of a corpse, theft, concealment of theft and non-disclosure of crime.

All four face life imprisonment.

Six other defendants, 

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  • Justice

  • Court case

  • Paris

  • Fire

  • Prostitute

  • Murder

  • Homicide

  • Ile-de-France