Trial begins in France of gang accused of assaulting Jewish family

Nine individuals allegedly abused and robbed a Jewish family in their Paris home in 2017.

View of Paris, France and the Eiffel Tower  (photo credit: REUTERS)
View of Paris, France and the Eiffel Tower
(photo credit: REUTERS)
Nine individuals accused of taking a Jewish family hostage in their Paris home in 2017 began their trial on Monday. 
The case involves the Pinto family, who before the attack were well-known among Parisian Jews for their active involvement in the community. They allege an antisemitic gang entered their home on Sep 8, 2017, abusing and robbing three members of the family. 
The Algemeiner recounted the family's horrific experience, noting that it started when their 41-year-old son, David Pinto, woke up to broken electricity in the family home in the Livry-Gargan neighborhood of Paris.
David went to the basement to check the electricity meter, opening a door which allowed three attackers, who had set a trap by cutting off the electricity supply, to break into the house. 
The three men reportedly gagged David, and then did the same to his 73-year-old mother, Mireille. 
She recalled to the Algemeiner that the attackers hit, kicked, and attempted to rape her. 
The gang also beat up Mireille's husband, Roger, leaving him unconscious. The Algemeiner reported that after regaining consciousness, one of the muggers told Mr. Pinto he was targeted because "Jews have a lot of money."  
However, lawyers for the nine defendants — the three assailants and six more individuals who assisted them with the robbery — dispute the allegation that antisemitism was a factor. They stated that the defendants had taken note of Mireille Pinto a few weeks prior to the robbery, describing her as a “chic lady with beautiful jewelry” whom they had stalked on her way home.  
At least one defendant reportedly claimed that he was “unaware” that his victims were Jewish. 
Several thousand euros in cash were stolen while the Pintos were tied up and locked in a room. After a few hours, Mireille Pinto managed to call for help using her son's phone. 

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After the attack, the Pintos moved away from the Livry-Gargan district where they had been established figures in the Jewish community for thirty years. Mireille Pinto still suffers from trauma due to the attack, while her husband was subsequently diagnosed with cancer.
The trial of the nine defendants, which is expected to go on for nine days, is eagerly anticipated by a French Jewish community still reeling from the decision of the country’s highest court in April to excuse from trial the accused antisemitic killer of Sarah Halimi. 
In 2017, Halimi, a Jewish woman, was brutally murdered in her Paris apartment. The perpetrator was excused on the grounds that his intake of cannabis had made him temporarily insane and therefore not criminally held responsible.