Grenoble

A week after the first revelations of the affair by our colleagues from Dauphiné Libéré, the investigation continues into the one that the Grenoble public prosecutor, Eric Vaillant, first called the man with the scooter. An investigating judge was seized of seven facts on Friday: two rapes, an attempted rape, a sexual assault, violence sometimes with a weapon, and an attempted extortion.

These acts were allegedly committed in Grenoble and its surrounding area, at night and since February 8, on young women in their twenties, by a 20-year-old man with rather red hair, according to the first elements provided to the press by the prosecutor. Interviewed this Tuesday April 2, 2024 by West FranceEric Vaillant considers, however, that it is difficult at this stage to have absolute certainty about the very existence of the individual sought, but the investigators are today relying, according to him, on credible testimonies and other elements.

“All girls need to think about this”

In the meantime, Grenoble continues its life. There are still many bike and scooter enthusiasts circulating in the streets of the city center. And if the affair of the man with the scooter is a subject, it does not occupy all the conversations on café terraces either. Yes, when we leave work late in the evening, we arrange to take the girls from the team home. But we were already doing it before, explains Antoine, a waiter in a bar, while Grenoble and its surrounding area have long been faced with delinquency, particularly due to drug trafficking. What especially questions the young man in this story is the not very precise portrait of the individual and the fact that they [les enquêteurs] are unable to stop it, the first facts dating from almost two months ago already. His colleague Adrien received a message from his mother, to his great surprise: she was telling me to be careful. I think everyone knows about it, also considers Valentine, 35 years old. All girls have to think about this when they come home late at night.

In addition to the media, messages circulate on social networks, in particular on Instagram and Tiktok, sometimes with photos of individuals having a priori nothing to do with the accused sought, or very often oppressive messages, going as far as ‘to plan a manhunt in the streets. According to the prosecutor, several dozen testimonies have been received since the wanted man’s description was published. They are treated by investigators diligently.

On the terrace of another café, a few streets away, a small group of young students, all aged around twenty, say they are following this affair and remaining cautious, without giving in to panic. We don’t really plan to change our habits, says one.

2024-04-02 14:49:27
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