A 78-year-old man appeared this Monday March 11 before the criminal court of Quimper (Finistère), prosecuted for violence against another 75-year-old septuagenarian.
Out of jealousy, despite his denials, he had dealt great blows with his rake handle on his rival.
A situation of “self-defense”, his lawyer had argued.
The prosecutor requested a four-month suspended prison sentence.
The case was adjourned until March 21.
It all dates back to March 22, 2023, almost a year ago.
A man presented himself to the Pont-l'Abbé gendarmerie that day to report acts of violence.
He explains that he lives in a small town in the Bigouden region, in southern Finistère.
He saw in front of his home a man he doesn't necessarily hold in his heart, wandering around for no apparent reason.
And for good reason: for several months the victim has been hosting a woman in her forties, placed under guardianship, who visibly thrills the hearts of both men.
A situation which would exacerbate the jealousy of the two suitors.
She allegedly had intimate relationships with both of them.
The victim claims to have been insulted then hit.
“I wanted to push the branches of my hedge.
There was a wheelbarrow and a rake lying next to it.
It was then that he grabbed the handle of the rake and hit me so violently that he broke the handle.
I fell to the ground.”
A total incapacity for work of 14 days will be issued to him later.
“It was he who wanted to hit me with a belt”
A version completely refuted by the other septuagenarian.
He spoke at the hearing on Monday.
“I just came to get some keys belonging to madam.
But under no circumstances did I want to have relationships.
It was he who wanted to hit me with a belt.
I grabbed the handle because I wanted to protect myself.
If it broke, it was completely rotten,” the defendant explained.
“Liar,” whispers the victim.
“We are not teenagers anymore.
You take a dim view of the relationship that the victim has with the lady and you wanted her to come and live with you.
Hence your visit that day.
Two roosters who end up fighting,” scolds the president of the court, Christophe Le Petitcorps.
“What you don’t know is that in addition to taking care of Madame, he has another girlfriend,” the defendant suddenly counterattacks.
For her part, prosecutor Sonia Dubois emphasizes in her indictment that maturity is not necessarily synonymous with wisdom in this case...
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The woman, the object of rivalry between the two men, clarified during the hearing that the rake belonged to her.
She was quite confused about the relationships she had formed with the two men, indicating only that she had "discovered every room in the house other than the kitchen", implying the bedroom as well.
The defense lawyer pleaded for acquittal, on the grounds that his client had only acted in self-defense.
The case was reserved until March 21.