At trial of attacks of 13-November, return of imperturbable Belgian investigating judge

Isabelle Panou, who instructed the record of the attacks for five years, was again at the helm, Thursday, to defend his investigation in the face of the criticism of the defense.

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The Belgian investigators who testified to the trial of the attacks of 13-November have all since since Brussels, by interposed screens, concealed behind the anonymity of a number (“PFB 446 906 682”). Isabelle Panou is there, in flesh, and obviously declines his identity. She was the investigating judge from the survey of the attacks of 13-November.

The first had used us to sober costumes and a word compassionate. Thursday, April 7, the second sat down his round silhouette, his purple dress and his pink cheeks at the helm, and after so many testimonials of soporific investigators on the form and sometimes indigent on the bottom, see Isabelle Panou, his exuberance and his Mastery of the file, had something exciting.

“Review” because we had already seen the 53 year old magistrate, come to the bar to present the investigation of his life. It was September 14, 2021, this trial was five days. Defense lawyers could not ask him any questions. She had promised to come back if they wished. The revoiled. “There has been a number of things since then, during this hearing,” said President of the Court, Jean-Louis Perès.

It took the “revelations” of Mohamed Abrini and Salah Abdeslam, the two main defendants. The first recognized having been a time “planned” for the attacks of Paris, and claimed that there was a few days before – and not the day before, as the Prosecution supports. The second has, meanwhile, explained to have never had the project to participate in the attacks, and have had its status for Kamikaze than to the last minute defection of Abrini. “Magic of the Assize Court”, has ironed the judge, sharing his “astonishment” in the face of these versions which she had never heard in five years of instruction, before reminding long remembers collected against one and the other, for the greatest happiness of the Prosecution.

But since the first passage of Isabelle Panou to the bar, he also “passed a number of” favorable defense “: over the months, the hearing highlighted significant faults In the instruction and fragility of the clues selected against some accused. Many defense lawyers were waiting for the judge the knife between the teeth. Las, they are finally broken on the carapace of this extraordinary witness, whose leather experienced by more than ten years of anti-terrorism has resisted without much trouble two hours of repeated offensives.

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/Media reports.