A teenager whose lie about her teacher contributed to his death at the hands of an Islamist has apologized to the victim’s family at a court in France on November 26th, revealing how a lie can ruin or even take someone’s life.
Girl admits lying that teacher was Islamophobic before he was beheaded https://t.co/5ydFhn6b2D via @MailOnline Absolutely speechless. That poor, poor man -
— Julie Burchill (@BoozeAndFagz) November 26, 2024
The court in Paris heard the teenager’s apology during a hearing on the tragic and brutal murder of French schoolteacher Samuel Paty in October 2020, who was an 18-year-old Chechen Muslim refugee murdered after he allegedly asked Muslim students to leave his classroom before showing caricatures depicting the Prophet Muhammad during a class about the 2015 Charlie Hebdo killings and freedom of expression in France.
The gunman, identified as Abdoullakh Abouyezidovich Anzorov, was shot dead shortly after killing and beheading Paty with a cleaver. The murder had a chilling effect on French society, with many French leaders, including President Emmanuel Macron, strongly condemning the murder and hailing Paty as a hero.
The girl, who was 13 at the time of the murder, falsely accused Paty of Islamophobia and even made allegations that he asked Muslims to leave his class before showing the caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad.
This is barbaric! Not just the child's lies but the belief murder is a remedy.
— Randy Jude (@randyjudedude) November 26, 2024
The 47-year-old history and geography teacher did not single out Muslims. Instead, he warned all of his students that on the next day, he would show the cartoons that sparked the deadly attack against Charlie Hebdo in 2015 and told those who might find the cartoons offensive to look away, cover their eyes, or not participate.
The girl was not even present in the classroom on that day. Nevertheless, she fabricated the story that Paty forced students to look at the cartoon and excluded her after she complained about her mother scolding her for being temporarily suspended.
"I know it's hard to hear, but I wanted to apologize... I'm sorry for destroying your life," the girl, now 17, addressed to Paty’s family.
"I wanted to tell my parents that it was false, but I was afraid to say it," she further admitted.
I’m horrified. The father of this lying little cow is a monster. He didn’t even bother to call the school to find out what was going on. I hope he rots in jail.
— Sandra Riley (@SandraR12178853) November 28, 2024
Even after the murder, the girl stuck with her story while the authorities were interrogating them. She only confessed to the truth 30 hours after questioning. The girl, who was not named, was given a suspended 18-month sentence for her false allegations last year.
Her father, then 52-year-old Moroccan Brahim Chnina, amplified the girl’s false claim by launching an online campaign against Paty, where he accused him of Islamophobia and of being a threat to the Muslim community.
His campaign also gained the attention of Abdelhakim Sefrioui, a known 65-year-old French-Moroccan Islamist activist. Together, they continued to spread misinformation about the schoolteacher, and Chnina even spoke with Anzorov multiple times over the phone, leading to increased tensions that led to the murder.
Dear God, they live amongst us
— Bee (@BeeDee6) November 26, 2024
Both Chnina and Sefrioui were accused of associating with a terrorist organization. While both of them denied inciting violence against Paty, Sefrioui claimed he only sought administrative actions against Paty. The two men were present in court during the trial.
Aside from Chnina and Sefrioui, eight people are currently on trial, accused of contributing to the climate of fear and hatred that led to Paty’s murder. Four other defendants, including a Turkish national and a Russian of Chechen origin, reportedly interacted with Anzorov online and shared jihadist propaganda. One of them, Yusuf Cinar, even posted a picture of Paty’s severed head with smiley faces after the murder.
Two other individuals, Naim Boudaoud and Azim Epsirkhanov, now 22 and 23 years old, respectively, are accused of being complicit with the murder by accompanying Anzorov to a knife shop where they procured the deadly weapons used to kill Paty. Boudaoud is charged with going with Anzorov to buy two replica guns and steel pellets on the day of the attack. Epsirkhanov also admitted to receiving 800 Euros from Anzorov to find him a real weapon but failed.
