The father of Sébastien Raoult, a Frenchman suspected of cybercrime against American companies and imprisoned for two months in Morocco, sent an open letter to President Emmanuel Macron on Friday August 5, “guarantor of judicial authority“.
“I officially ask you to ensure that no judicial authority, ministerial or foreign, comes to hinder the work of the prosecutors or seeks to influence them in their decisions.“Writes in particular Paul Raoult to the President of the Republic.
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The American authorities are demanding in Morocco the extradition of his son Sébastien, a 21-year-old student from Épinal, for his alleged involvement in a case of cybercrime targeting companies, American in particular. According to’Obs, Microsoft would be one of them. The latter has been imprisoned since June 2 in the Tiflet 2 prison, near Rabat. He would face a sentence of 116 years in prison in the United States if he were found guilty of the facts attributed to him, according to his lawyer, Me Philippe Ohayon. “Diplomacy, international relations or the risk of offending a foreign power should not prevail over a judge’s decision“, Estimates the father of the family in this missive sent to the Élysée and shared on his Facebook account.
He also asserts that ainvestigation was conducted in France under letters rogatory from a French judge, in the context of an American request for international assistance», saying to himself «worried that the United States could interfere in a French investigation“. At the same time, Me Ohayon asked the Épinal prosecutor’s office to open an investigation into the facts attributed to Sébastien Raoult who previously resided in the Vosges. “We want an investigation to be opened which will undoubtedly lead to an extradition request», Hopes his father today. After a first refusal, the Épinal prosecutor confirmed to AFP on Tuesday evening that he had received new elements from the lawyer which “will also be studied“.
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Also questioned by Paul Raoult, Éric Dupond-Moretti explained on Wednesday that his ministry had “not the possibility“to intervene”at this stage” in that case. “Moroccan justice is a sovereign and independent justice“, he had argued, agreeing however that the case “concerns us since he is an extremely young French national who incurs in the United States (…) very heavy prison sentences“.