Six individuals have been indicted and placed in pretrial detention for their alleged involvement in the murder of Mehdi Kessaci on November 13, 2025, in Marseille. They were arrested on Monday in the Marseille region and Hérault by judicial police. Anti-organized crime prosecutor Vanessa Perrée announced the developments in a statement.
The investigation into the assassination of 20-year-old Mehdi Kessaci, who had no ties to drug trafficking, has advanced four months after the incident. On November 13, 2025, he was shot multiple times in broad daylight on a roundabout in Marseille's 4th arrondissement. Authorities view the killing as a "warning" targeting his brother, Amine Kessaci, an anti-drug trafficking activist and municipal councilor elected on Benoît Payan's list.
Ten people were arrested on Monday by the criminal brigade of the Bouches-du-Rhône organized and specialized crime division (DCOS 13) and the Central Office for the Fight Against Organized Crime (OCLCO). Four were released after police custody. The remaining six – five men and one woman – were brought before the national anti-organized crime prosecutor's office (PNACO) and indicted for murder, attempted murder in an organized gang, and participation in a criminal association aimed at preparing a crime. They are suspected of being part of a commando acting on orders from one or more masterminds from Marseille's major organized crime.
The presumed shooter was not among those arrested, a source close to the case said. Amine Kessaci wondered: "The question that worries me most is whether they mistook me for my brother or did it deliberately to send me a message?" Suspicions fall on Amine Oualane, alias 'Mamine,' a presumed DZ Mafia leader, but his lawyer, Me Julie Guichard, denied any involvement, stating it undermines his presumption of innocence.
The probe is now led by the PNACO.
