At the trial of the 'A10 martyr', initial tensions mark the opening of the hearing

On November 2, 2026, outside the Blois courthouse in central France, at the opening of the assize trial of the parents of Inass Touloub, a four-year-old girl found dead and mutilated in 1987 alongside the A10 motorway - ALAIN JOCARD © 2019 AFP

It is a trial awaited for nearly 40 years that opened this Monday, November 2, at the Blois Assize Court (Loir-et-Cher). The parents of Inass, the 'little martyr of the A10', found lifeless in 1987 alongside the motorway, are on trial for at least two weeks for 'acts of torture and barbarity resulting in death without intent to cause it' for the mother, and 'complicity' in the same acts for the father.

While numerous journalists and spectators crowded outside the judicial court early in the morning to secure a seat inside, several tensions marked this first day of hearings.

Starting with the fate of the broadcast room set up about one hundred meters from the courthouse so that the public and the press could follow the hearing, as the main courtroom has limited seating. At the beginning of the hearing, a technical outage prevented spectators in that room from following the proceedings for several minutes. An interruption that irritated the defense, which requested that the broadcast room be shut down. Tempers flared between Frank Berton, attorney for Inass's father, Ahmed Touloub, and the presiding judge.

"You are not going to interrupt me all the time, you are not a schoolteacher!" the Lille-based lawyer thundered. Nonetheless, the court did not grant his request.

"Chased by a horde"

Outside the courthouse, another incident marred the lunch break: several members of the Mouv'Enfants association, not civil parties in the trial but present to attend the hearing, chanted slogans and accosted Halima El Bakhti, the victim's mother, according to her defense.

"We were chased by a horde, threatened, insulted as filth and murderers. The police had to intervene, had to form a cordon between these particularly vehement people, and she was ultimately evacuated in a police vehicle," recounted her lawyer, Camille Radot, who explained he had to act as a barrier himself to protect his client. "This is unacceptable. There is justice; this is where it is served, not outside the court."

Reacting to this incident, Advocate General Stéphane Javet stated that a criminal investigation would be opened regarding the episode: "One can think whatever one wants about the alleged facts. (...) But they showed up and have the right to a fair trial," he scolded.

A supplementary expert evaluation for Ahmed Touloub

At the end of the day, the defense brought another sensitive issue to the table: the medical and psychiatric status of both defendants. While they were examined by a doctor in mid-October and deemed fit to stand trial, Frank Berton pointed out that the physician had nonetheless noted "mild to moderate cognitive impairment" in his client.

"What are mild to moderate disorders? That is the question I want to ask, that I want the court to ask," the Lille lawyer declared, requesting that a supplementary psychiatric evaluation be conducted. "In this case, as in any other criminal matter, one cannot try someone who might not be able to understand the questions and who would have difficulty defending themselves. (...) I want everything done by the book," the leading trial lawyer concluded.

The court ultimately granted his request, expecting the findings of this evaluation "as soon as possible."

A bit earlier, his client was invited to take the floor to state his position on the facts. Clinging to his walking stick and leaning on the bailiff's arm, Ahmed Touloub approached the stand with slow steps. "I never laid a hand on any of my children," he asserted. But does he acknowledge the complicity he is accused of? "I myself am beaten (by his ex-wife, editor's note), so how could I be an accomplice?"

Halima El Bakhti, accused of committing repeated violence against Inass, including bites and blows that progressively led to her death, denounced her co-defendant's "lies" against her. The presiding judge asked if she admitted the alleged facts. "Yes, I admit it, but nonsense was told. He (pointing to her husband, editor's note), he lied a lot, and the girls too," she replied. "Do you admit to having committed acts of torture and barbarity?" the presiding judge followed up. "No, she is my daughter," the accused answered this time.

"Inass remains four years old for eternity": the trial of the little martyr of the A10 opens, 39 years after the facts

"Martyr of the A10": in Puteaux, an association campaigns for a street named after Inass Touloub

The hearing resumes on Tuesday with testimonies from various investigators on the case.

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