PARIS: A Paris court has sentenced eight people to up to six years in prison for being part of a gang of burglars who scaled buildings to steal millions in valuables from the rich and famous, including former Paris Saint-Germain football star Thiago Silva.
The seven men and one woman, aged between 27 and 31, were accused of burgling not just top players from the PSG team, but also music and TV personalities in seven burglaries in 2018 and 2019.
Operating in units of two, three or four, they robbed the homes of TV host Patrick Sebastien, celebrity chef Jean-Pierre Vigato and an unnamed wealthy Saudi national, taking a combined €4.2 million ($5 million) worth of goods.
The heaviest sentences of six years in jail were given by the court in its verdict late Wednesday to Mohamed S., who thanks to his climbing prowess was known as “The Cat” — a nickname he rejects — and Abdelazim G., who goes by the nickname “Bidou” — or “Kid.”
Mohamed S. confessed to two thefts but was convicted of five, while Abdelazim G. confessed to five and was convicted of seven.
They were convicted of being part of a criminal gang and carrying out gang theft, while Mohamed S. was also convicted of possessing a weapon after a pistol was found in his car.
The five other men were sentenced to terms of between one and four years for taking part in the burglaries at different points.
The only woman among the defendants was given an 18 month suspended sentence for concealing stolen goods and possessing a weapon.
None of the victims of the burglaries appeared at the trial and only the Saudi businessman filed a civil complaint.
Silva — the PSG captain at the time, now playing for Chelsea — returned home after a match on Dec. 23, 2018 to find his safe, jewelry and watches worth a combined €1.2 million were gone.
Surveillance camera footage showed two men climbing up a drainpipe and entering Silva’s mansion through a French window. Minutes later, they reappeared carrying their loot in a backpack and a suitcase they took from the house.
At first the suspects denied everything. But over the past year, investigators made inroads on the gang, with members admitting to some of the accusations, or claiming that they were only on lookout while others carried out the thefts.
Meanwhile, Paris Saint-Germain stars have continued to be targeted in burglaries.
This year, Spanish PSG player Sergio Rico and Argentinians Mauro Icardi and Angel Di Maria were burgled, as was the family of their Brazilian teammate Marquinhos.
Paris court jails burglars who robbed Saudi businessman and Chelsea footballer Thiago Silva
https://arab.news/pe8pw
Paris court jails burglars who robbed Saudi businessman and Chelsea footballer Thiago Silva
- The seven men and one woman, aged between 27 and 31, were accused of burgling not just top players from the PSG team, but also music and TV personalities in seven burglaries in 2018 and 2019
‘Keep dreaming’: NATO chief says Europe can’t defend itself without US
BRUSSELS: NATO chief Mark Rutte warned Monday Europe cannot defend itself without the United States, in the face of calls for the continent to stand on its own feet after tensions over Greenland.
US President Donald Trump roiled the transatlantic alliance by threatening to seize the autonomous Danish territory — before backing off after talks with Rutte last week.
The diplomatic crisis sparked gave fresh momentum to those advocating for Europe to take a tougher line against Trump and break its military reliance on Washington.
“If anyone thinks here again, that the European Union, or Europe as a whole, can defend itself without the US — keep on dreaming. You can’t,” Rutte told lawmakers at the European Parliament.
He said that EU countries would have to double defense spending from the five percent NATO target agreed last year to 10 percent and spend “billions and billions” on building nuclear arms.
“You would lose the ultimate guarantor of our freedom, which is the US nuclear umbrella,” Rutte said. “So hey, good luck.”
The former Dutch prime minister insisted that US commitment to NATO’s Article Five mutual defense clause remained “total,” but that the United States expected European countries to keep spending more on their militaries.
“They need a secure Euro-Atlantic, and they also need a secure Europe. So the US has every interest in NATO,” he said.
The NATO head reiterated his repeated praise for Trump for pressuring reluctant European allies to step up defense spending.
He also appeared to knock back a suggestion floated by the EU’s defense commissioner Andrius Kubilius earlier this month for a possible European defense force that could replace US troops on the continent.
“It will make things more complicated. I think Putin will love it. So think again,” Rutte said.
On Greenland, Rutte said he had agreed with Trump that NATO would “take more responsibility for the defense of the Arctic,” but it was up to Greenlandic and Danish authorities to negotiate over US presence on the island.
“I have no mandate to negotiate on behalf of Denmark, so I didn’t, and I will not,” he said.
Rutte reiterated that he had stressed to Trump the cost paid by NATO allies in Afghanistan after the US leader caused outrage by playing down their contribution.
“For every two American soldiers who paid the ultimate price, one soldier of an ally or a partner, a NATO ally or a partner country, did not return home,” he said.
“I know that America greatly appreciates all the efforts.”
