A long-time friend of André, a Belgian pensioner who died last week following a heated exchange with a group of youths squatting in his French holiday home, has called for action from educators and politicians to arrest the decline into delinquency increasingly prevalent among French youths.
On Sept. 3 in the quiet holiday retreat of Cogolin, in the Var region of southern France, the 77-year-old found several minors using his swimming pool without permission. Upon asking them to leave the property, André was met with a tirade of abuse.
The youths threatened to gang rape his wife and slit her throat, and then kill him.
André reportedly collapsed during the verbal assault and attempts to resuscitate him were unsuccessful. Witnesses told police that no blows were exchanged.
“They killed him with words, and if nothing is done, in a year they will kill with a knife,” Philippe, a close friend of the victim, told local media, as cited by France Bleu. Philippe, who was present at the time of the tragedy, said the group of children threatened to rape his wife, slit her throat, and cut open his stomach. “It was not possible that we would hear such things,” he recalled. “He [André] froze, it was too much for him to hear that from children when they were simply asked to leave the premises.”
Authorities have opened an investigation to establish the exact circumstances, and an autopsy is scheduled to clarify whether the pensioner suffered a fatal heart attack triggered by the confrontation.
For Philippe and his wife Véronique, who had holidayed alongside André for many years, the death has had a profound impact. “André loved children,” Philippe said. He described the four minors as “lost, capable of the most horrible things, the harshest words, the most unimaginable behavior in children aged 12 to 14.”
The incident has caused anguish within the community of retirees and holidaymakers who see Cogolin as a peaceful refuge. “People come here to escape the sad things we see on TV,” Philippe explained. “It was our little corner of paradise.”
Philippe has called for a wake-up call in memory of his friend, urging parents, educators, and politicians to confront what he sees as a dangerous path for the country’s youth. “The situation must be known so that those responsible — parents, family, educators, politicians — realize that they have an important role to play in saving these kids. Because in two years, it will be over. Today, they kill with words. Tomorrow they will kill with a knife in their pocket.”
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