New murder in the middle of the street, in broad daylight in Marseille (Bouches-du-Rhône). This time, he was a 20-year-old young man who was unknown to the police, but who was the younger brother of Amine Kessaci, an environmental activist involved in the fight against drug bandits. Who is the victim? Why was he killed? We take stock.
What has happened?
This Thursday, November 13, at around 14.30, a 20-year-old young man was shot and killed in the 4th arrondissement of Marseille, just a stone’s throw from the Dôme, the largest concert hall in the city of Marseille.
Based on the preliminary investigation, “a motorbike approached the victim’s vehicle which had just parked” when the rear passenger of the motorbike “shot several times at the victim who was still in his vehicle”, explained Marseille prosecutor Nicolas Bessone.
Based on information from Le Parisien, the shooter coldly fired four 9 mm caliber bullets into the victim’s chest. Several chests of this caliber were found at the site, Nicolas Bessone confirmed.
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What do we know about the victims?
The victim named Mehdi is the younger brother of environmental activist Amine Kessaci. The information we have obtained is that this 20 year old young man has never been involved in any drug cases.
According to the initial elements of the investigation, the victim “was completely removed from everything that disturbed Marseille, drug trafficking and organized crime”, said Nicolas Bessone. He was “completely unknown” to police and the justice system “with a clean criminal record,” he said, noting that he also wanted to be a police officer.
“He took the peacekeeping exam for the first time and he did not pass. He is in the process of ironing it out,” explained Benoît Payan, Mayor of Marseille, this Friday morning on BFMTV.
Who is Amine Kessaci?
Aged 22, Amine Kessaci is a community activist and environmental activist, who ran for the 2024 European elections in Marseille on Marie Toussaint’s list to represent the voice of young people and the working class environment but narrowly lost the National Rally (RN). He is primarily known locally for his fight against loved ones who have fallen victim to drug bandits.
The life of Amine Kessaci, a young political enthusiast, who grew up in a town in the northern district, was turned upside down on the night of 28 to 29 December 2020, in a barbaric triple murder that primarily affected his half-brother Brahim, the victim of a gunshot and whose body was later found charred in a vehicle near Marseille. He later founded the Conscience association to help families, legally and psychologically, and change the way people viewed the dead he considered victims.
After the final appeal of one of the defendants was rejected by the Court of Cassation in early November, the case must be tried in 2026. Brahim was the only one who fell into drugs among a family of six, Amine Kessaci later assured.
On October 2, the young activist published a work entitled “Marseille, wipe your tears, life and death in the land of drug trafficking”, dedicated to drug bandits and the death of his half-brother. “Politics never reached me, so I decided to strangle it (…). Brahim, it was you who hugged me the day you burned in the car,” we can read in the work published by the Marseille publisher Le Bruit du monde.
Since his book was published, Amine Kessaci has clearly benefited from “private protection, given the possible threats to him”, according to Marseille prosecutors. Despite this, the activist remains active in Marseille. In late October, he was in the Old Harbor for a crane operation with environmentalists.
“Organized gang murder”
Following the incident, an investigation was opened by the Marseille prosecutor’s office into “murder by an organized gang” and “criminal conspiracy with intent to commit a crime”. “This was a professional job,” a source close to the investigation told Le Parisien, explaining that the shooters had been waiting for Mehdi’s mother, who accompanied him this Thursday, to enter the pharmacy to kill him. “Therefore, they volunteered to save the mother,” said this source.
According to our information, one of the preferred ways is to issue a warning to Amine Kessaci by DZ Mafia, although its modus operandi is not necessarily compatible with criminal organizations that generally employ small hands in human trafficking to shoot indiscriminately.
Recently, Amine Kessaci took an ambiguous position on anti-trafficking legislation, positioning himself against eviction of drug dealers from their homes, considering that small hands are being exploited and that expelling their families is not a solution. At this stage, investigators are questioning this position, believing it could have been dictated by the dealers, according to sources close to the case.
When asked about a potential murder warning aimed at activist Amine Kessaci, the prosecutor indicated that “the hypothesis at this stage is not at all excluded”. “If this is the case, we will take further steps. It reminds us of the bad times in our country, where you would kill people, just because they were family members with whom you had problems. Maybe because the young Amine Kessaci was heavily involved in drug trafficking,” added Nicolas Bessone, calling “at this stage” to remain “very careful.”
A proven lead, according to a person close to the investigation, who feared an “Italian-style mistake with drug dealers now trying to attack journalists, police officers, judges”.
“Silencing those who speak”, protested Benoît Payan
If the trail of warnings is confirmed, “we will have crossed a very serious threshold. It is about silencing those who speak, who are not afraid and who denounce,” reacted Benoît Payan this Friday morning on BFMTV. The Mayor of Marseille spoke with Amine Kessaci, who was “devastated”. “You can imagine what Amine felt this morning in terms of pain (…), including in terms of guilt. This is very difficult for him, for his family, his parents, his sister. It’s really terrible, very bad for Marseille, very bad for his family,” he continued.
In a message posted on “We will be there for you. Today and every next day,” he also expressed concern for colleagues running in European elections in 2024.
