She was not known to any police service. She was not targeted. And yet, on the night of July 7 to 8, this woman in her forties was shot dead at her home in the 5th arrondissement of Marseille. It was 1:21 a.m. when firefighters responded to Rue Jean Martin for a woman with a gunshot wound who was in cardio-respiratory arrest. Despite resuscitation attempts, she did not survive. According to initial investigations, the victim was inside her apartment when several bullets came through the front door. One of them hit her in the chest. There is no evidence that she was personally targeted. Neither she nor her husband are known to the police. The theory that she was a collateral victim of a settling of scores is therefore taken very seriously.
Investigation into organized murder
The violence of the attack, in the middle of the night, in a residential area, triggered the opening of an investigation for "organized murder" and "organized criminal conspiracy." It was entrusted to the central directorate of the judicial police (DCOS). The shooters, whose profile(s) remain to be identified, are still at large. While the motive has not yet been definitively established, this latest incident is part of a Marseille context marked by a series of homicides linked to rivalries between criminal networks. The apparent lack of connection between the victim and criminal circles reinforces the hypothesis of an error or indiscriminate targeting. This tragedy is a reminder that, in certain urban areas, armed violence no longer spares the innocent. That night in Marseille, a woman was killed behind a closed door. Simply because she happened to be there.
