Rabat – The twenty-four suspects charged in connection with the Imlil murders will face trial on May 16.
The suspects will face different charges based on their involvement in the killing of two Scandinavian tourists in December 2018.
The list of the defendants includes four main perpetrators, who posted a video pledging allegiance to ISIS leader Abu Bakr Al Baghdadi just a few days after the murder.
Moroccan television channel 2M has listed the suspects of the charges will face for their direct connection to the double murder.
The group of defendants on trial includes Younes Ouzayed, Rashid Afatti, Abderrahman El Khyali, and Abdessamad Al Joud.
Al Joud is considered the leader of the group, and is facing charges of “forming a gang to commit terror crimes and intentionally assaulting the life of persons premeditatedly.” He will also be prosecuted for inciting people to commit terrorist acts, praising terrorism, and promoting extremism.
Further charges include using weapons and attempting to manufacture explosives, and plotting activities to undermine national security. The suspect will also be charged for reoffending.
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Ouzayed will face the same charges as Al Joud although he is not a repeat offender. Ouzayed will face charges of forming a gang, and committing terror acts, as well as harming people’s lives intentionally. Like Al Joud, he will also be prosecuted for inciting people to commit terror crimes, and praising terrorism, as well as participating in unauthorized activities.
Affati, who filmed the crime committed by Al Joud and Ouzayed, will be charged with forming a gang to commit terrorism, as well as committing violence. He will also face charges of attempting to manufacturer terror explosives to undermine the stability and security of the country.
El Khyali, the fourth key defendant in the case, traveled with the other suspects to Imlil for the murder of the two Scandinavian tourists before returning to Marrakech to find a hideout.
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El Khayli will be prosecuted for committing terrorist crimes, forming a cell, murder, attempting to manufacture explosives to undermine the stability of the country. He also faces the same terrorism charges as the three other suspects.
Twenty more Defendants
Prosecutors are charging the 20 other suspects with involvement in the murders of Louisa Vesterager Jespersen and Maren Ueland which caused national and international trauma in December of last year.
The list of the suspects includes one Swiss-Spanish defendant.
In April, Moroccan news agency Maghreb Arab Press (MAP) reported that a Moroccan court sentenced another Swiss national on separate charges to 10 years in prison. The suspect was convicted of “setting up of a gang to prepare and committing terrorist acts aimed at seriously undermining public order, and defending, organizing and failing to report terrorist crimes and acts.”
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On December 17, 2018, Moroccan authorities found two bodies of Scandinavian tourists near Mount Toubkal in the Atlas Mountains. Moroccan police revealed that the two tourists were beheaded.
A video showing two men decapitating a European woman went viral on social media days after authorities found the bodies of the two Scandinavian tourists. The timing of the post shocked international and local people, who linked the video with the murders.
Moroccan police did not comment on whether the video depicted the crime, but Norwegian police said they had no reason to believe the video was not connected with the Imil murders.
Suspects convicted of terror-related charges may be sentenced with 10 to 20 years in prison depending on the extent of their involvement in the crime.
The suspects appeared at court in Sale on May 2, but a decision was made to postpone the trial give the defence lawyers time to “prepare.” The twenty-four defendants will now appear in court on May 16.
