On October 29, it was 6:45 a.m. when the police were informed that an attempt to deliver packages using a drone was taking place at the Beauvais prison (Oise), from Bois Quéquet. A patrol went to the site and spotted a gray Volkswagen Golf on Rue Hector Berlioz, registered in Germany, which, given the time and place, did not seem to fit with any tourist interest. They undertake checks of the car and its occupants.
As soon as the driver, Christopher Michaud, 27 years oldopens the door, they smell a strong odor of cannabis and notice a ten-centimeter-thick wad of notes lying near the glove box. The driver has a bag which contains €680. The handbag of the passenger sitting next to him, just in front of the wad of bills, Gaëlle Ourdouillie, 23 years oldcontains 150 €.
Phones, cash, drugs and a drone
A search of the trunk revealed a multitude of telephones, €1,000 in cash, a precision scale, chargers, 126.60 grams of cannabis resin and 11 grams of cannabis herb, as well as baby diapers intended for to protect the contents of the missiles, the drone, and four packages ready for shipment. The car was rented a few days earlier from Béthune (Pas-de-Calais) by Christopher Michaud, to replace his which is broken. While the police search her, Christopher tells his friends what to say. This is what he repeats to the president of the Beauvais criminal court during his immediate appearance this Friday, December 13.
Michaud says he wanted to spend a romantic night in Beauvais
In the first version, he and his partner come to Beauvais to spend a romantic evening at the hotel. “That’s not what the other two say», interrupts the president. He corrects: “I came to Beauvais to be of service to Léo Duquesne, 19 years old. He asked me to accompany him because he doesn’t have a car. I extended the car rental contract for one day and he gave me €200 in compensation“. He then says that all three arrived in Beauvais at 3 a.m. to pick up the keys to two rooms, but that the young woman was afraid to share the room with two men. So they drove Léo Duquesne to rue Hector Berlioz before returning to the hotel and starting their romantic night which they finally spent in their car parked in the parking lot. Christopher Michaud says he received a call on the WhatsApp group, “in the cabin”, whose purpose is to allow detained people to stay in contact with the outside world. This message told him to pick up Léo Duquesne, exactly where he left off.
She wasn’t surprised by the wad of cash
The court will then hear the young woman’s version, which is a little different: “he (Christopher Michaud) came to pick me up to go to Beauvais in the company of Léo Duquesne. On the way we stopped several times… Christopher picked up an Auchan bag which he placed at my feet. I didn’t look at what it contained, I suspected it was something forbidden“. The wad of cash in front of her didn’t surprise her, nor did the smell of cannabis in the car and leaving someone at 6 a.m. in a residential area near the prison. She didn’t ask any questions. She confirms that she said “what we told him to say: spend a romantic night, at the hotel, in Beauvais“.
The young Duquesne is a regular
Questioned in turn, the third defendant, Léo Duquesne, 19 years old, maintains his initial statements: “I said what I did. Christopher Michaud contacted me about this missile launch. It had been a week since my father, to whom I returned after my release from prison last July, kicked me out. He promised me €200, I needed the money, I accepted“. He also recounts his difficulties in piloting the drone, “which does not react as indicated in the instructions», the launch delayed due to the passage of a round of supervisors…
Léo Duquesne has been convicted ten times in three years, including four times for identical acts of handing prohibited objects to detainees. He says he is known for this and often receives items to give to prisoners. “Christopher came to pick me up in Douai from my mother, we then picked up Gaëlle, because, he said, “a girl at the front will go better”. We made several stops to pick up things. We both went down twice, to Douai and to Amiens.»
The prosecution notes that these facts are increasing
The deputy prosecutor underlines “the resurgence of this type of act committed by prisoners who, despite the ban, have telephones in prison“. For Léo Duquesne, who recognizes everything and is anchored in decay despite his young age and who has already served two committal warrants, he is asking for an adjustable sentence of one year in prison. For Christopher Michaud, who denies the facts, who gives two versions that do not hold up, who has a long record and who is the driver and organizer, he is asking for a three-year prison sentence and the revocation of a suspended sentence. height of three months. Finally for Gaëlle Ourdouillie, who does not see the bundle of €3,970 placed in front of her, who is not aware of it, who does not smell the smell of cannabis, who has not seen the Beauvais prison and who has been recruited by Christopher Michaud as a front passenger to deceive the enemy, he asks for a twelve-month prison sentence with a simple suspended sentence.
For lawyers, the penalties required are excessive
Gaëlle Ourdouillie’s lawyer, Arnaud Ledru, protests against the substitute’s requisitions: “she is 23 years old, has a clean record and her two co-defendants say she didn’t know what they were doing. According to the prosecutor: “she should have known what was happening…” The burden of proof is reversed. There is no moral element, no guilty intention“.
Marie Dufoyer ensures the defense of Léo Duquesne “who was unable to direct the drone. He assumes responsibility for the facts and the consequences despite the context of reprisals to which he is subject. He succumbed to easy money: “tossing two or three packages for 100 or 200 balls”. There is no bonus for recognizing the facts… It’s a poor kid who takes responsibility“. She wants to be placed under an electronic bracelet, one last chance.
Christopher Michaud is defended by Benoît Varin who believes that the three years in prison required by the prosecution for an attempt to hand over objects is excessive: “It’s his criminal record that he’s being made to pay for. He found a job a few days after his last release from prison. He is in touch with the sponsors, but he is not the instigator“. The lawyer regrets the absence of confrontation between the defendants, despite the differences in version. “It’s time for the court to sort it out. Three years in prison is unreasonable.»
The three are found guilty
All three were found guilty. Léo Duquesne, receives ten months in prison plus two for the revocation of his current suspended sentence. He may request adjustments from the sentence enforcement judge. Christopher Michaud will spend twenty-seven months in prison, including three months for the revocation of his suspended sentence. For her first conviction, Gaëlle Ourdouillie received four months in prison with a simple suspended sentence.
