Moroccan-Canadian Woman on Trial for Assaulting Local Official in Property Dispute

"My client is a woman who has been a victim of violence," stressed the lawyer of the MRE, Bouchaïb Essoufi, in a brief pleading on Wednesday. He accused the public authorities of "having acted according to negative behaviors". He assured that his client "was assaulted, which led to a reaction on her part".

Accompanied by her husband, the MRE had tried to recover items from her brother, a street vendor, and another relative, which the competent authorities of the prefecture of Skhirat-Témara had seized in public space. These items were on sale. They went to the headquarters of the seventh administrative annex several times, harassing the auxiliary forces agents and civil servants in order to recover their belongings.

The video posted on social networks shows a person fighting with a member of the auxiliary forces and a law enforcement officer during one of these trips to the administrative annex headquarters. Stung, this person, also an MRE, displayed her determination to fight it out with the members of the local authority. Another individual was trying to calm the dispute. Meanwhile, a caïd was watching the fight.

The MRE was filming the scene. Shortly after, the caïd intervened to prevent her from filming the fight at the entrance of the headquarters of his district. A gesture she did not appreciate. This woman jumped on him to slap him twice.

On Friday, March 21, the street vendor, his brother, his wife and their colleague were all brought before the public prosecutor’s office of the court of first instance of Témara, then placed in detention, accused of insulting public officials and violence against a civil servant.

On Wednesday, the court of first instance of Témara postponed the trial of the MRE, reports Alyaoum24, adding that the judge announced that he would rule on the request for provisional release presented by the defense of the accused.