Family of Slain Moroccan Teen Seeks Answers in French Hit-and-Run Investigation

"There are several things they don’t understand. First of all, how is it that an individual who has been identified and who has committed acts of this gravity has not yet been arrested? We are told that he is of Spanish origin and that he could have left for there. Very well, it is precisely with this country that we have the best police cooperation. We have the means to know the family ties he has there. So what is the real status of the investigation? We just know that the judicial police have been co-seized. That’s very good, but it’s not enough," explains Marc Gallix, the family’s lawyer, in an interview with Midi Libre.

He says he understands that everything is not said to the family. "But here, we are in the opposite excess," he points out, before asking: "why is the family being kept out of the investigation?" In Marc Gallix’s eyes, this situation seems strange. "Since the parents were received by the prosecutor last Friday, they have had no more news. They don’t even know what means are being implemented to find their son’s killer. This is the first time I’ve seen this in such a sensitive case. The least we could do, given what they’ve been through, would be to check in with them from time to time, whether it’s from the investigators or the prosecutor’s office. This would allow them to feel supported."

To read:

According to him, not saying anything only fuels incomprehension, stokes rumors and exacerbates the feeling of injustice and tensions. "The observation today, unfortunately, is that things are not progressing very quickly," adds the lawyer "We were heard as witnesses. But for the rest? The police asked me to gather the names and numbers of witnesses, when it’s not really my role and I’m in mourning," says Saïd, Aymen’s older brother, who asks that his family be kept informed of the progress of the investigation, even once every two or three days, and "even if we are not given all the details."

A few days after the teenager’s death, the family is still in shock. "As is the case for my parents or my sisters, a part of us died with him that evening," Saïd explains. "He was the one who brought the house to life, who laughed, who sometimes annoyed us. He was the heart of the family. There will always be a shadow following us."