French judge ends Moroccan man’s detention, but deportation order remains in force
He lives with his parents and says he helps care for his father. He has also acknowledged a daughter who is now an adult. At the hearing, these family ties were central to his challenge, while the prefecture sought an additional twenty-six days in detention.
On October 12, 2026, as he was released from prison, a 40-year-old Moroccan man received an order from the prefect of Pyrénées-Orientales at 10:25 a.m. requiring him to leave France immediately and banning him from returning for five years. He was immediately placed in administrative detention.
The man was serving a 12-month sentence for causing unintentional injuries while driving, with two aggravating circumstances. At the hearing, he explained that the accident happened while he was riding an electric scooter under the influence of alcohol. The prefecture cited a threat to public order to justify his detention.
On Bladi.net : Convicted in France, this Moroccan national who has lived there since childhood overturns his OQTF
After holding a resident card, he had obtained a temporary residence permit, which expired on May 11, 2025. On July 28, 2026, his application for leave to remain was refused.
On October 15, the prefect sought an additional twenty-six days to prepare his removal. The man challenged his detention. He said he had lived in France for thirty-five years and knew very little about Morocco, where he was born.
Judge finds no risk of absconding
At the October 16 hearing, his lawyer, Me Imme Krüger, emphasized her client’s family ties. His parents, brothers and sisters live in France. He said he had two daughters: an adult daughter he had acknowledged and a 16-year-old teenager he had not. He also said he helped his father, who needed regular care.
Judge Matthieu Colomar noted the seriousness of his criminal record, but also took into account how long he had lived in France, that he was staying with his parents, that his identity was not disputed and that he had repeatedly taken steps to obtain the right to remain. In the judge’s view, these safeguards ruled out a risk of absconding.
On Bladi.net : Arriving in France at 3, he was due to be deported to a Morocco he barely knows
In its October 16, 2026 ruling, the Toulouse judicial court found that detention was neither necessary nor proportionate to the aim of removing him from the country. It rejected the prefecture’s request for an extension.
However, the October 12 order remains in effect: the ruling expressly states that the Moroccan man is still required to leave French territory.
