>>10842907What we know so far. Look at the stupidity of the Christucks' testimonies.
The 39-year-old Rwandan Catholic man "was in charge of closing the cathedral on Friday night [the night before the fire] and the investigators wanted to clarify certain elements of his schedule," said Nantes prosecutor Pierre Sennès. Especially since some contradictions were noted in his remarks.
He was alone to close the doors at 7 p.m. on Friday 17 July. He was therefore in possession of all the keys like the six other volunteers who take turns every day to open and close the building. However, the magistrate had stressed during his first police custody that "any interpretation that could implicate this person in the commission of the facts [was] premature and hasty". He added that the possibility of an accident, possibly an electrical accident, was still being studied in the same way as the criminal hypothesis. From now on, it is this latter lead that is officially retained.
Arriving from Rwanda a few years ago, the man was followed and housed by the Diocese, like other people. He was seeking to renew his visa and "was in discussion with the Prefecture on this point," according to the prosecutor. "I don't believe for a second that he could have set fire to the cathedral. It's a place he loves," said Jean-Charles Nowak, clerk of the cathedral. He is a man of duty, very kind, smiling but rather silent. I know that he has many health problems and that he suffered a lot in Rwanda. He did a service for Father Champenois who had no one to serve Mass on Saturday night. So he was also a regular Mass server. The rector of the cathedral, Hubert Champenois, said that he had "total confidence" in this volunteer. The latter now faces "a 10-year prison sentence and a fine of 150,000 euros" for this offence.
The organist Michel Bourcier didn't seem to believe in Emmanuel's guilt either.
