On May 23, Stéphanie, 22, was killed by her companion in Hayange, in Moselle. The young woman had filed a complaint against him for death threats, but the information was not transmitted in time to the magistrates who decided on his return home. While the role of the police is singled out, the police unions are stepping up and denouncing a lack of staff.

A 22-year-old young woman was stabbed to death on the night of Sunday to Monday in the street in Hayange.

His companion, a 23-year-old political refugee from Serbia, was indicted and imprisoned Wednesday evening for "spousal homicide" and taken into custody.

And since then, the controversy has swelled, especially because the victim had already lodged a complaint against his companion for death threats, but the magistrates did not have this information when deciding on his return home, after a prison sentence in a another matter.

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700 files pending at the Hayange police station

Almost a week after Stéphanie's death, the police fight back: they don't want to be suspected of negligence in this case.

The unions therefore stand up for the police who say they have too much work.

Stéphanie's complaint against her husband for violence and death threats was among the 700 other cases pending at the Hayange police station.

And the fact that it was not transmitted to the prosecution undoubtedly allowed the return to the marital home of the respondent, ten days before the murder.

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"Six colleagues in a population basin of 45,000 inhabitants"

"700 files for six colleagues, that makes roughly a portfolio of 120 files. Depending on the number of files, the colleague establishes an order of priority to be dealt with. It's always easy to say after ... But there is so much There are complaints that are filed for anything and everything. In the procedure, often there are 30 to 40 acts to be done and it takes hours and hours of work. ... ", confides to Europe 1 Fabrice Marsault, of the SGP Police Unit union, in Moselle. He says he's tired of hearing his colleagues being at fault. “Six colleagues out of a population of 45,000 inhabitants, can you imagine? There are choices to be made and we do not necessarily always do the right thing and that's dramatic. Colleagues are necessarily affected.We are all upset by this tragedy, ”he continues.

The trade unionist adds that if the complaint was not transmitted to the prosecution, the justice did not report to the Hayange police office either the return of the spouse to the marital home after his imprisonment for traffic offenses.