Overview
- The Valence public prosecutor, in a final réquisitoire dated Monday, August 17, formally contested the investigating judges' July decision to retain a racism aggravating circumstance in the 2023 killing of 16‑year‑old Thomas Perotto.
- The prosecutor says witness reports of anti‑white remarks were few, inconsistent, imprecise and not attributable to specific suspects, so the racial aggravation cannot be reliably sustained on current evidence.
- The parquet nevertheless asked judges to retain an aggravating circumstance of 'concomitance,' noting that two other people at the village dance were also targeted in attempted murders that night.
- Fourteen young men remain under formal investigation for murder and attempted murder in an organized group, they face a possible life sentence, and none has admitted delivering the fatal blow.
- Victims' lawyers and anti‑racism groups sharply criticized the prosecutor's position and the judges must now decide whether to confirm or overturn the aggravating circumstances before any referral to the assize court.