PARIS (AP) 鈥� France鈥檚 anti-terrorism court on Friday convicted eight people of involvement in the four years ago, a horrific death that shocked the country.
Paty, 47, was killed by an Islamic extremist outside his school on Oct. 16, 2020, days after showing his class cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad during a debate on free expression. The assailant, an , was shot to death by police.
Those who have been on trial on terrorism charges at a special court in Paris since the end of November were accused, in some cases, of providing assistance to the perpetrator and, in others, of organizing a hate campaign online before the murder took place.
The 540-seat courtroom was packed for the verdict, which marked the final chapter of the Paty trial. Heavy surveillance was in place, with more than 50 police officers guarding the proceedings.
Seated in the front row was Paty鈥檚 9-year-old son, accompanied by family members. As the lead judge, Franck Zientara, delivered sentences one after the other, emotions in the room ran high.
鈥淚 am moved, and I am relieved,鈥� said Ga毛lle Paty, Samuel Paty鈥檚 sister, as she addressed a crowd of reporters after the verdict. 鈥淗earing the word 鈥榞uilty鈥� 鈥� that鈥檚 what I needed."
"I spent this week listening to a lot of rewriting of what happened, and it was hard to hear, but now the judge has stated what really happened, and it feels good,鈥� she added, her voice breaking as tears filled her eyes.
Families of the accused reacted with gasps, cries, shouts, and ironic clapping, prompting the judge to pause multiple times and call for silence.
鈥淭hey lied about my brother,鈥� shouted one relative. Another woman, sobbing, exclaimed, 鈥淭hey took my baby from me,鈥� before being escorted out by police officers.
The seven-judge panel met or went above most of the terms requested by prosecutors, citing 鈥渢he exceptional gravity of the facts.鈥�
Na茂m Boudaoud, 22, and Azim Epsirkhanov, 23, friends of the attacker, were convicted of complicity in murder and sentenced to 16 years in prison each. Neither can be paroled for two thirds of their term, about 10 years. Boudaoud was accused of driving the attacker to the school, while Epsirkhanov helped him procure weapons.
Brahim Chnina, 52, the Muslim father of the schoolgirl whose lies sparked the events leading to Paty鈥檚 death, was sentenced to 13 years for association with a terrorist enterprise. Prosecutors had sought 10 years for him.
Abdelhakim Sefrioui, a Muslim preacher, was given 15 years for organizing a hate campaign online against Paty.
The shocking death of the 47-year-old teacher left an indelible mark on France, with several schools now named after him.
The trial had begun in late November. The defendants were accused of assisting a perpetrator or organizing a hate campaign online in lead-up to the murder.
At the time of the attack, there were and calls online for violence targeting France and the satirical French newspaper Charlie Hebdo. The newspaper had republished its caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad a few weeks before Paty鈥檚 death to mark the opening of the trial over by Islamic extremists.
The cartoon images deeply offended many Muslims, who saw them as sacrilegious. But the fallout from Paty鈥檚 killing reinforced the French state鈥檚 commitment to freedom of expression and its firm attachment to .
Chnina's daughter, who was 13 at the time, claimed that she had been excluded from Paty鈥檚 class when he showed the caricatures on Oct. 5, 2020.
Chnina sent a series of messages to his contacts denouncing Paty, saying that 鈥渢his sick man鈥� needed to be fired, along with the address of the school in the Paris suburb of Conflans Saint-Honorine. In reality, Chnina鈥檚 daughter had lied to him and had never attended the lesson in question.
Paty was teaching a class mandated by the National Education Ministry on freedom of expression. He discussed the caricatures in this context, saying students who did not wish to see them could temporarily leave the classroom.
An online campaign against Paty snowballed, and 11 days after the lesson, Anzorov attacked the teacher with a knife as he walked home, and displayed the teacher鈥檚 head in a post on social media. Police later fatally shot Anzorov as he advanced toward them, armed.
Chnina's daughter was and given an 18-month suspended sentence. Four other students at Paty鈥檚 school were found guilty of involvement and given suspended sentences; a fifth, who pointed out Paty to Anzorov in exchange for money, was given a 6-month term with an electronic bracelet.
Sefrioui, the preacher on trial, had presented himself as a spokesperson for Imams of France although he had been dismissed from that role. He had filmed a video in front of the school with the father of the student. He referred to the teacher as a 鈥渢hug鈥� multiple times and sought to pressure the school administration via social media.
Some of the defendants expressed regrets and claimed their innocence on the eve of the verdict. They did not convince Paty's family.
鈥淚t鈥檚 something that really shocks the family,鈥� lawyer Virginie Le Roy said ahead of the verdicts. 鈥淵ou get the feeling that those in the box are absolutely unwilling to admit any responsibility whatsoever."
鈥淎pologies are pointless, they won鈥檛 bring Samuel back, but explanations are precious to us,鈥� Le Roy said. "We haven鈥檛 had many explanations of the facts.鈥�
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Petrequin reported from London.
Tom Nouvian And Samuel Petrequin, The Associated Press
