Completely devastated" but determined: a Frenchman contests his prison sentence in Morocco

Unlike the eighteen Senegalese supporters also tried at the beginning of this week, Lyèce Mouri has taken the initiative to appeal. This 27-year-old Frenchman, brother of a member of the Senegalese coaching staff, had been sentenced to three months in prison in mid-February. According to the daily Le Parisien, the Moroccan justice system accuses him of having thrown a bottle at the security forces at the Prince Moulay Abdellah stadium in Rabat on January 18.

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During the skirmishes that occurred at the end of the match, the defendant was wearing a Senegal team jersey. Today, he categorically rejects the facts attributed to him and denounces a case of mistaken identity. According to his lawyer, Maître Jaouad Benaissi, the national says he is "completely devastated" but remains determined to prove his absolute innocence before the judges.

The defense considers this sentence totally unfounded in the absence of tangible material evidence. The legal advisor also indicates that he has undergone strong pressure, explaining that he has been described as a "traitor to the nation" for having accepted this case. Facing the court, the accused stressed that he "was ready to consider the slightest evidence that would be held against him", illustrating his incomprehension in the face of this sanction deemed disproportionate.

The strategy of the young man contrasts radically with that of the other co-defendants who have chosen to remain silent. Lyèce Mouri has decided to answer all the questions of the judges during this new hearing. His counsel recalls that he was initially happy to go to Morocco, even claiming to have been "stunned by the quality level of the organization" of the tournament before the situation deteriorated.

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This individual appearance is part of a vast judicial case involving other fans prosecuted for acts of hooliganism. The local authorities blame these groups for deliberately disrupting the match and causing violence that resulted in material damage estimated at 370,000 euros by the public prosecutor.