Moroccan Resident of 24 Years Deported from France, Sparking Controversy

Arrived in France at the age of 21, this man, whose lawyer Me Anne-Sophie Mang confirms the regular situation, had built his life in Haute-Saône. An entrepreneur in the scrap metal sector since 2022, he had been living in a common-law relationship with a French woman for about fifteen years and was the father of 13-year-old twins. The couple owned their residence in Anchenoncourt-et-Chazel, according to l’Est Républicain.

On February 21, he was expelled to Morocco, without the possibility of prior contact with his family or to recover his personal belongings. His lawyer denounces "inhuman conditions" during this expulsion, referring to a man "tied up, with a helmet on his head", as his lawyer protests.

The prefecture of Haute-Saône justifies this measure, taken in December 2024, by the judicial history of the person concerned: 13 convictions between 2005 and 2023, totaling more than six years of imprisonment. It relies on the law of January 26, 2024 (CIAI law - Controlling immigration and improving integration), which stipulates that "multiple convictions and prison stays are incompatible with integration into society".

In a letter dated March 4 addressed to the Minister of the Interior, the lawyer contests this interpretation, specifying that her client is neither a terrorist nor a criminal, but has been convicted of offenses such as theft and driving under the influence of drugs. For the lawyer, her client has "paid his debt to society" by serving his sentences.

Me Mang emphasizes the duration of this man’s presence in France, more than 24 years, and the consequences of his expulsion on his family. "Today, the life of a family has been destroyed and he has no assurance of ever seeing his partner [...] or his children again," she laments.