Maxime Leroy case: private-hire driver to face murder trial after appeal rejected | OneFootball

Rennes' investigating chamber has rejected the appeal of the private-hire driver who fatally stabbed Nantes fan Maxime Leroy near La Beaujoire on 2 December 2023, before Nantes v OGC Nice. He will be tried for murder before the Loire-Atlantique assize court and faces up to 30 years in prison.

According to L'Équipe, the decision upholds a 31 December order by the investigating judge. The driver had appealed on 7 January to face the lesser charge of intentional violence causing death without intent, which carries 20 years, and a cassation appeal is seen as likely.

Defence lawyer Julien Plouton said the court now sets out in detail the extreme violence his client faced and the active role of some Nantes ultras. He argued the assize court can still reclassify the offence.

The accused remains in custody and the trial is expected within a year. He surrendered on the night, admitted two knife blows to Leroy, but denies intent to kill, saying he was attacked by Nantes supporters.

A second driver accepted a plea on 11 March, receiving an 18-month suspended sentence and a five-year ban on possessing or carrying a weapon. First heard as a witness, he was later placed under formal investigation after officers found his car had a recording system and the videos had disappeared, and he is accused of striking Leroy with a telescopic baton.

Some Nice fans instead flew in and travelled by private-hire cars that passed Le Saint-Georges, near the Brigade Loire, before violence erupted.

Source: L'Équipe