Femicide in Essonne: Yacine A. sentenced to 28 years for murder of his partner
Yacine A. was found guilty of murdering his partner Deo, whose body had been hidden in a freezer in Grigny. He received a sentence of 28 years' imprisonment.
Murder of Deo in Grigny: 28 years in prison for Yacine A., his accidental shooting theory rejected
The Essonne assize court condemned Yacine A. on Thursday to 28 years' imprisonment for the murder of his partner, nicknamed Deo, killed in 2023 in Grigny and whose body had been hidden in the freezer of his home, notretemps.com reports. The 50-year-old butcher, held in custody for three years, had pleaded until the last moment for accidental gunfire — a theory that the court did not accept.
Convicted of murder aggravated by a conjugal relationship, Yacine A. was sentenced with two-thirds security, meaning he should serve at least a further 15 years behind bars. The public prosecutor had requested 30 years' imprisonment, citing two shots fired at close range, a body wrapped in blankets then placed in the living-room freezer, all accomplished with considerable "cold-bloodedness" the day after a quarrel.
The accomplice sentenced to three years, of which 21 suspended
His sixty-year-old accomplice, Rachid A., was found guilty of helping to conceal the crime. He was sentenced to three years' imprisonment, of which 21 months suspended, accompanied by an electronic tag. The court found that psychological disorders had impaired his judgment and imposed a requirement for care.
During the four-day trial, Yacine A. maintained a fluctuating version of events. He first implicated a female friend — who had been held in custody before benefiting from a dismissal — then Rachid A., before eventually partially admitting his responsibility: "I admit that the first shot was fired by my fault, but the second one, honestly, I can't say anything about that," he declared from the witness stand, eyes fixed to the ground, insisting he had "loved" his partner.
The family demands justice, the prosecution describes a typical pattern of conjugal violence
Relatives of the victim came to court in large numbers, wearing white t-shirts printed with Deo's portrait. They publicly regretted the "lies" of the two accused and the inconsistency of their successive statements. "Those who are sentenced for ever, that's actually us, I'll never see my mother again," the victim's eldest son had said during his testimony.
The family's lawyer, Ms Solène Debarre, hailed the verdict with AFP: "I think the civil parties are very satisfied with the result. Justice has been done and that is what they demanded." The defence lawyers, contacted by AFP, preferred not to comment.
The prosecution had described in its closing argument a mechanism "well known" in cases of intimate partner violence, against a backdrop of excessive alcohol and drug consumption, increasingly verbally aggressive behaviour, and violence against a "free woman". The public prosecutor had emphasised that placing the body in the freezer "like ordinary goods" had "stripped a part of humanity" from the victim. "It is not love to blackmail with suicide and shoot one's partner," she had stated.
A minor son still to be tried
Yacine A.'s son is to be tried separately by the juvenile court, for tampering with the crime scene with the aim of obstructing the manifestation of truth.
In 2025, 111 women have been killed by their spouse or ex-spouse in France, an increase of 4 per cent year-on-year, according to data from the Ministry of the Interior.
Source: Google News LU FR