The investigating judges in charge of the death of Jean-Paul Benjamin, a motorist shot dead in Aulnay-sous-Bois in March 2022, have ordered the police officer’s dismissal for intentional violence resulting in death, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported, Friday, September 6, from a judicial source.
In their indictment, they ruled out the legitimate defence invoked by the police officer, who was not in the path of the van driven by the victim when it started up again.
“In the absence of an element of immediate danger, the use of a weapon against the driver is not absolutely necessary and, above all, is disproportionate to the simple risk of escape of a person suspected of theft of property.”The 35-year-old police officer will be tried before the Seine-Saint-Denis criminal court, they wrote in the August 29 ruling consulted by AFP.
The development of events
On Saturday 26 March 2022, Jean-Paul Benjamin, director of a freight forwarding company and in conflict with an intermediary of the multinational Amazon over unpaid invoices, stole a van full of packages from delivery drivers shortly after midnight. The van has been reported stolen. The police radio antennas are alerting.
A BAC team from Aulnay-sous-Bois spotted the vehicle on the long avenue Suzanne Lenglen, which was busy at the time of the incident. At the wheel of the van, Jean-Paul Benjamin was waiting for a traffic light to turn green before heading towards the town of Gros-Saule, with the left indicator on. One of the team’s police officers got out of the car and walked towards the truck. Within three seconds, the brigadier was at the driver’s door of the van, stepped back as the vehicle started up and fired.
The bullet passed through the body of the vehicle, pierced Jean-Paul Benjamin’s shoulder blade, passed through several vital organs and lodged in his liver. It ended its journey in the neighbouring Beaudottes district of Sevran. Suffering from internal bleeding, he died a few hours later in hospital.
During the investigation, the brigadier said he feared for his life and that of pedestrians. He said he acted in self-defence. However, according to the investigation based on video surveillance images and testimonies, Jean-Paul Benjamin did not behave in any way dangerous to pedestrians and motorists. The officer is also accused of having intervened alone without waiting for reinforcements.
He will be tried for wilful violence resulting in death without intent to cause it by a person holding public authority.
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