On January 11, 2020, a group of criminals arrested in Bron by the police during an investigation for "aggravated theft" refused to stop, preferring to rush on one of them.
Hit by the van and dragged twenty meters, Franck Labois died of his injuries two days later.
The driver's trial opens on Monday before the assizes of the Rhône.
He faces life imprisonment.
“He didn't shoot, while in self-defense, and he died.
Franck Labois died at the age of 45, on January 13, 2020, two days after being hit by a van and dragged twenty meters.
Plunged into a coma, the policeman had not survived his injuries.
The trial of his murderer opened on Monday morning before the Rhône Assize Court.
The person concerned, who admitted to being the driver of the van, still denies having intended to kill the official.
On the evening of the tragedy, the police had been assigned to monitor criminals as part of an investigation for "aggravated theft in an organized gang".
The group, who was on board a Volkswagen, is spotted committing a freight theft on a motorway rest area in Isère.
The agents try to intercept them a little later.
Killed for laundry cans
They position themselves at the exit of the highway, near the town of Bron, with the help of the GAO - Departmental Security Operational Support Group, called in as reinforcements and in which Franck Labois worked.
Quickly, the van is stuck between the police vehicles.
At this moment, the driver decides to rush on one of them facing him, who, weapon in hand, tells him to stop.
Today, the policeman's mother and brothers, who have joined as civil parties, are awaiting explanations from the accused.
They want to understand "why he did not stop, why he preferred to kill a man rather than surrender for the few cans of detergent he had in the truck", underlines their lawyer Jean-François Barre.
The deceased was posthumously awarded the insignia of Chevalier de la Légion d'honneur and was elevated to the rank of captain.
During an official tribute, the Minister of the Interior at the time Christophe Castaner had hailed "a great policeman and an invaluable man", and called on his colleagues to "follow his example, continue the mission" without however "letting the hatred prevail”.
The accused, in a state of recidivism, incurs life imprisonment.
Company
Policeman killed near Lyon: "We can be easy prey", points out a former colleague of the victim
Lyons
Policeman killed near Lyon: Christophe Castaner honors the "great policeman" Franck Labois
Justice
Court case
assize court
Policeman
Lyons
Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes