Egoitz Urrutikoetxea, son of the historic leader of the Basque separatist organization ETA Josu Ternera, was sentenced Wednesday November 17 in Paris to two years in prison suspended for "
terrorist criminal association
".
The Paris court ruled that if "
the proof was not brought forward that he had been a member
" of ETA, "
the fact of having maintained relations (...) repeated with eminent members
”Of this organization between 2003 and 2005 well characterized the offense of“
criminal association in connection with a terrorist enterprise
”.
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Nevertheless "
in view of the age of the facts
" and its "
very strong social, professional and family integration
", "
a prison sentence without suspension would be totally inadequate
", explained the president of the court during the announcement of the deliberate. He will have to justify for one year of his professional activity and respond to summons from a sentence enforcement judge, and the sentence will not be entered in the file of perpetrators of terrorist offenses (FIJAIT), she added.
The son of Josu Antonio Urrutikoetxea Bengoetxea, known as “
Ternera
”, now aged 47, is the father of two children, a doctoral student in history and deputy educational director of immersive schools in the Basque language.
He is also elected to the urban community of the Basque Country.
After the announcement of the judgment, he qualified as an "
aberration
" this "
sentence of principle
", pronounced while "
the court notes that there are not enough elements to consider (him) as a member of the 'ETA
'.
"
My analysis is that the court could not afford to announce an acquittal,
" he added.
"In law, it does not hold"
"
In law, it does not hold
", to convict for terrorist criminal association on the basis of "
links with members
" and a "
sympathy
" displayed, said his lawyer, who had requested the release. Egoitz Urrutikoetxea indicated that he did not rule out appealing the judgment. During the hearing, on October 8, the prosecutor requested a 4-year suspended prison sentence and the registration of the sentence at the FIJAIT.
His indictment was based on the discovery of his fingerprints and a DNA trace on objects found in apartments in several towns in southwestern France rented by ETA members, as well as in a vehicle used by the organization. "
His father was then in the preparation phase of the Geneva peace talks
", which took place in 2005-2006, "
he lived discreetly and his son was able to join him
" on several occasions, argued his lawyer, questioned by AFP. Egoitz Urrutikoetxea was sentenced in his absence for these same facts, to twice four years in prison, in 2007 and 2010.
Arrested in the Paris region in October 2015 and briefly detained, he asked to be retried in order to be able to explain himself in court.
Created in 1959 under Franco's Spanish dictatorship, ETA is accused of having killed at least 853 people during four decades of violence in the name of the independence of the Basque Country.