Brussels, (EFE)
These are Salah Abdeslam, who also participated in the Paris attacks in 2015, Mohamed Abrini, Osama Krayem, Ali El Haddad Asufi, Bilal El Makhoukhi and Osama Atar, the alleged ringleader of the plot who is considered to have died in Syria in 2017, for which he was tried in absentia.
Three other defendants acquitted
The jury, on the other hand, has acquitted the other three defendants for the same – Sofien Ayari, Hervé Bayingana Muhirwa and Smail Farisi – while the tenth man who sat on the bench, Ibrahim Farisi, was not charged with this crime.
The president of the court that judges the case, Laurence Massart, read this afternoon the verdict issued by the jury after several days of deliberation and seven months of hearings, although the sentence will be decided next September.
In addition to the charges of terrorist murder, the ten defendants are accused of attempted terrorist murder and participation in the activities of a terrorist group, with the exception of Ibrahim Farisi, who is charged only with the latter offence.
Delays and seven months of hearings
The reading of the verdict, which began shortly after 7:00 p.m. local time (5:00 p.m. GMT), almost five hours behind schedule, is expected to last several hours.
After seven months of hearings, the twelve members of the jury withdrew to deliberate on July 6 and, after eighteen days in which they have remained isolated, yesterday they reached a verdict.
Today the judge will read the conclusions of the 287 questions to which they have had to answer with “yes” or “no” and justifying them to determine the guilt or innocence of the defendants.
Once the verdict is known, the jury and the three magistrates will meet again in September to determine the penalties that those convicted will face.