This Sunday, November 29, a week after the events, the Paris public prosecutor Rémy Heitz returned in great detail to the violent arrest of producer Michel Zecler, as well as the procedures that have followed since.
Read also: Man beaten up in Paris: the four police officers recognize the beatings, deny the racist insults but say they panicked
The facts go back to "
Saturday November 21 shortly before 7 pm, rue des Renaudes
" in the 17th arrondissement of Paris.
According to the minutes collected, "
the arrest resulted from the refusal
[of Michel Zecler]
to submit to a police check for lack of wearing a mask, and suspicion of possession of narcotics
".
According to the police "
a strong smell of cannabis emanated from his person
".
Michel Zecler would have "
tried to escape control
" by taking refuge in the music studio, the police officers being "
drawn by force
" into the building to be able to continue the control.
They would have suffered "
violence
From the person concerned, which is why they then filed a complaint.
One of the policemen specifies that he had to use his baton, another tear gas.
Read also: Who is Michel Zecler, the rap producer beaten up by the police?
The arrest would also have, according to the police officers in their report, "
been
made difficult by the intervention of other people
".
After the altercation and at the same time as Michel Zecler was placed in police custody for violence against persons holding public authority and rebellion, "
nine other people were brought to the police station for identity verification before being released
" .
While in custody, Michel Zecler was examined by a doctor.
This one noted "
a wound of the scalp requiring a staple
", a labial wound, a hematoma on the left wrist, a wound of 8 centimeters on the left foot, an abrasion in the right hand as well as a hematoma of 2 centimeters. to the right leg.
The Temporary Interruption of Work (ITT) has been set at 6 days.
Michel Zecler denounces the same day of “
violence
”, including kicks, punches and batons, and declares to have been sprayed with tear gas, threatened with a weapon, also mentioning an impact on one of the windows of the building.
The next day, the lawyer for the producer of urban music drew attention to the “
possible distortions of the facts
” between the versions of the police officers and that of his client.
A first report of the investigation is made, and given the violence, the police station of the XVIIth arrondissement is divested in favor of that of the XVIth arrondissement.
The General Inspectorate of the National Police (IGPN) is also seized "
as an observer
", detailed this Sunday Rémy Heitz.
0.5g of herbal cannabis
Always Sunday, November 22, Michel Zecler, heard again, explains that he was heading "
on foot, without a mask, to his production studio
" the day before.
He denies having been the author of blows on the police officers, questioning the veracity of the facts described in the report.
As for the police, as part of their hearings, they confirmed their version of the facts.
A doctor prescribed them ITTs of 1, 2, and 5 days respectively.
During the day of Monday, a search of the music room is organized.
We discover the bag carried by Michel Zecler, containing 0.5g of herbal cannabis.
The video recording of the arrest is also captured, more precisely the images from 6:42 p.m. to 6:58 p.m.
We see a film of the entrance hall, with a surface "
very small of 4m²
" specified the prosecutor.
After a telephone report from investigators to the Paris prosecutor's office, the latter lifted Michel Zecler's custody and dismissed the file concerning him.
To read also: After the filmed violence, the police put to the test of suspicion
It was the next day, Tuesday, November 24, that the prosecution then opened an investigation for "
violence
" by persons holding public authority, and forgery in public writing (concerning the police report), entrusting the investigations to the 'IGPN.
Michel Zecler, heard again on Thursday 26th, reiterates his statements, and claims to have been treated as a “
dirty nigger
”.
In addition to filing a complaint against all identifiable police officers, the studio's co-owner files a “
degradation
”
complaint
.
"
Very good service record"
Last Friday, November 27, the four police officers (the three who carried out the arrest and the one suspected of having thrown a tear gas canister) were placed in police custody.
They are between 23 and 35 years old.
Rémy Heitz specifies that they “
have good or even very good service records
”.
The investigations are continuing, several witnesses being heard, including a police officer who arrived as reinforcement.
A new examination of Michel Zecler takes place, the result of which is not yet known.
Heard, the three police officers of the arrest "
recognize
" then having struck at Michel Zecler, because of his attitude and their inability to control him.
The police officers also mentioned the "
panic
" felt in this room "from
which they could not escape, because of the resistance of the arrested and the configuration of the place
", specifies Rémy Heitz.
The police contested any racist insult, as well as the falsehood of the PV.
Regarding the entry into a private home, the police said that they "
thought it was an entrance hall of a building
".
The prosecutor then said that the police "
ended up admitting that the beatings were not justified
".
As for the 4th police officer, he explained "
having thrown the grenade to open the door
", a decision he justified "
by the ignorance of the context of the intervention, and the confusion
".
Also on Friday, 6 of the 9 people present on the scene were heard, 4 of them filing a complaint for “
violence committed by a person holding public authority
”.
This Sunday, November 29, the four police officers were brought to justice, "
for the purpose of opening a judicial investigation
" against them, said Rémy Heitz.
The prosecution requested the first three to be indicted for acts of violence resulting in an ITT of less than 8 days accompanied by insults, forgery in public writing, home invasion and willful damage to private property during a meeting.
The fourth is prosecuted for willful violence with weapons, as well as for degrading property with dangerous means.
Pre-trial detentions were also required for the first three.
The public prosecutor of Paris concluded, for the rest of the case, that "
justice will endeavor to shed full light on the facts, while respecting the principles which govern it
".
To read also: Man beaten up in Paris: the boss of the police denounces "delinquent behavior"