The trial of Dahbia Benkired (27), a woman accused of murder, rape, torture and an act of barbarism against 12-year-old Lola Daviet, begins in Paris today, in a crime that shocked France in 2022 and sparked fierce political debates about the country’s immigration policy. The body of the little girl Lola was found on October 14, 2022, closed in a plastic suitcase that was discarded in the street, not far from her home in the 19th arrondissement of Paris. The case caused grief and anger across the country, while the French media then spoke of one of the most brutal crimes in the last decade.
The crime that shook Paris
According to the facts established by the investigation, Lola Daviet was last seen on October 14, after she returned from school and reached the building where her parents worked as janitors. The building’s security cameras show Dahbia Benkired, a homeless and unemployed woman who was staying with her sister in the same building at the time, talking to Lola just outside the building’s entrance.
A few hours later, the girl’s parents reported her missing, worried that she had not returned home. On the video surveillance footage, it was recorded that Benkired entered the corridor of the building around 5 pm surrounded by several suitcases, among which was a large plastic crate in which, according to the indictment, the girl’s body was later placed.
Serious charges and psychiatric examination
According to the prosecution, Benkired was accused of murdering a minor with elements of rape, torture and barbarism. During the investigation, she allegedly gave “confusing and contradictory statements” about the events of that day. She was repeatedly subjected to psychiatric and psychological examination, but it was determined that she was able to follow the trial and that she was sane at the time of the crime.
Since her arrest in 2022, she has been in Fresnes prison, south of Paris, where she has spent the last three years awaiting the start of her trial. If found guilty, she faces up to life in prison.
Political instrumentalization of tragedy
The crime against Lola Daviet quickly took on a political dimension. After it was announced that Dahbia Benkired was born in Algeria and did not have the right to stay in France, the far right tried to use the case as an argument against the government and its migration policy. The leader of the Rassemblement National party, Marine Le Pen, then pointed out that “the state has failed” in protecting citizens. Éric Pauget, deputy of the conservative party, reacted similarly Les Républicainswho declared in parliament that Lola was “a victim of France’s weakness towards illegal immigration”.
However, the reactions from the government were harsh. Then-Justice Minister Éric Dupond-Moretti called on politicians to “show at least some decency”, accusing the right of “using the coffin of a 12-year-old girl for political propaganda”.
Legal qualification and duration of trial
According to French law, any act of sexual penetration of another person, committed by violence, coercion, threat or surprise, qualifies as rape. In this case, the prosecution is also charged with torture and “an act of barbarism”, which further complicates the potential sentence. The jury trial at the Paris Court of Serious Crimes is expected to last until next Friday, when a final reasoned decision and verdict should be handed down. The French public is following the process with special attention, while the family of the murdered Lola hopes that, three years after the tragedy, they will finally receive justice.
(TIP/Source: federalna.ba/The Guardian/Photo: FB)
