“I recognize the facts. But we did not imagine the consequences ”. From the first day of his trial before the Paris Assize Court, Thibaud Garagnon, 24, confirmed that in September 2015 he set fire to the building at 4 rue Myrha, in the Parisian district of Goutte d’Or.
The incident, one of the deadliest arson attacks in recent years in the capital, left eight people dead, including two children aged 8 and 14. The trial is scheduled until December 11.
Brown hair tied back in a ponytail, wearing a dark gray long-sleeved t-shirt with the effigy of « Fluttershy », a character from the children’s series « My Little Pony », the accused entered the cubicle by moving with a crutch. “We didn’t think we would kill people”, he insists to the address of the court and the jurors.
The accused implicates his “imaginary friends”
In the audience, a voice sounds immediately. ” Stop lying ! “ President Emmanuelle Bessone immediately interrupts the untimely cry and returns to Thibaud Garagnon, perplexed. ” You say I recognize the facts then you go to We… This is Yes or We ? », she asks.
The young man, under psychiatric follow-up since his incarceration one year after the facts, explains that he set fire to the building under the influence of one of his “Imaginary friends”, character ” very violent “ he calls “Pride”. “He is part of my personality”, he argues.
During his various interrogations, the young man spoke to investigators about several of these “Imaginary friends” as « Baby Fox », « Thibaud/Fox », or « Light », the “Sweet and shy”, to whom he calls when he needs comfort.
President Bessone does not seem totally convinced. During the instruction, she recalls, “It was not always a question of these different personalities. At first, you never talked about it ”.
“I didn’t want to talk about my personalities because I was afraid it would have a bad effect”, answers the young man.
Psychological and psychiatric experts who will be called to the stand next week have dismissed “Any abolition or alteration of discernment at the time of the facts”, specifies the president immediately. In other words, Thibaud Garagnon would be totally responsible for his actions.
In his box, the accused said nothing. In prison, he cultivates his immature side. Besides his t-shirt « My Little Pony », he has pacifiers, bottles and soft toys in detention.
State whether the accused was well aware of his actions
After hearing from two investigators, the court showed photos of the fire, including gruesome photos of charred bodies. At the request of the President, the families of the victims are invited to leave the room. In his box, Thibaud Garagnon keeps removing his glasses to wipe his eyes with a paper handkerchief rolled into a ball.
“It’s hard to watch”, notes the president. “I had never seen these photos”, admits the accused. “You never asked to see them during training?” “, insists the Advocate General, Rémi Crosson du Cormier. ” I did not think “, mumbles the accused.
Questioned by the press outside the Assize Court, Laurent Thieffry, one of Thibaud Garagnon’s lawyers, admitted “The complex personality” of his client. There is “A proven or hypothetical split of personality”, advanced Me Thieffry, who also speaks “Major psychological difficulties”.
“He didn’t want the consequences of his actions. He had no awareness of the dangers he was causing to others ”, argues the lawyer.
“When I hear he says we, it shocks me and it annoys me because until now, he does not want to tell the truth ”, was annoyed Alassane Tandian, one of the parents of four of the eight victims of the fire, questioned at the exit of the court. “It is not a person who is sick. He knows very well what he does, what he says ”, believes Alassane Tandian who was a tenant of the building burnt down by Thibaud Garagnon.
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