Paris Suspect's Own Lawyer Mocks His Intelligence

As Salah Abdeslam is extradited to France, his Belgian lawyer has colorful words
By Kate Seamons,  Newser Staff
Posted Apr 27, 2016 6:09 AM CDT
Paris Suspect's Own Lawyer Mocks His Intelligence
This Wednesday April 13, 2016 file image taken from video of of Salah Abdeslam, left, the fugitive from the Nov. 13 Paris attacks.   (TVbrussels via AP)

Suspected Paris attacker Salah Abdeslam was on Wednesday extradited to France, with the Belgium prosecutor's office very plainly saying he "surrendered to the French authorities this morning." French criminal lawyer Frank Berton will be taking on his case, reports the BBC, and Abdeslam's Belgian lawyer seems very pleased to have dumped his client on someone else. In what the AFP describes as an "extraordinary" interview given to the Liberation newspaper on Wednesday, lawyer Sven Mary described Abdeslam as having "the intelligence of an empty ashtray."

Mary doesn't restrain himself to a single insult but further describes Abdelslam as a "little moron from Molenbeek, more a follower than a leader. ... He is the perfect example of the GTA [Grand Theft Auto] generation who thinks he lives in a video game. I asked him if he had read the Koran, and he replied that he had read its interpretation on the internet." Reuters reports that Abdeslam allegedly told investigators he had a hand in planning the Nov. 13 attacks but bailed on his plans to blow himself up at a sports stadium at the 11th hour. He is scheduled to appear before French judges Wednesday as well. (More Salah Abdeslam stories.)

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