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France“Unpublished” condemnation to Verdun for Swiss looters
Two men received very heavy fines for trying to steal relics from the First World War.
The two Swiss ranged on the historic site of the Vauquois Butte, not far from Verdun.
FacebookTF1 proposed Tuesday evening in its “8 pm” a subject on looters which are rampant on the site of the Battlefield of Verdun, where the famous battle of the First World War took place. And, in the end, two Swiss had their moment of glory, which they would probably have passed. “In May, two Swiss nationals were sentenced to 10,000 euros each, for violation of the archaeological heritage,” said the journalist.
A very heavy fine, therefore. The information had gone relatively unnoticed, but it was however a first, had communicated two months ago the prefecture of the Meuse, speaking of an “unprecedented judgment for the sites of the First World War”.
The prefecture had explained that the two Swiss had been arrested in September 2023 on the Vauquois Butte site, about thirty kilometers from Verdun, another bloody place between the German and French armies at the start of the Great War.
“In their vehicle and hotel room: metal detector, shovels, reminder equipment … and shell fragments as well as a grenade, illegally taken from this site classified as historic monuments,” he was detailed.
Millions of shells, thousands of corpses
At the time, “L’Est Républicain” had said that the two men had also collected ammunition, 8 mm Mauser. And that they were clearly not there by chance: in their equipment there was also a barbedick pliers, climbing strings and even cards indicating the positions of the time of the lines of the French and German fronts …
Judged in the Verdun court a few weeks ago, these two Swiss were therefore sentenced to a fine of 10,000 euros each. “This judgment is a first in France for the sites of the First World War,” said the prefecture of the Meuse.
In addition to this example which occupied justice, TF1 explained that there are still millions of shells under the feet of some 300,000 visitors who go each year to the Verdun site, described as an open -air museum. And, according to estimates, some 80,000 deaths still in the soil, with their personal effects, such as weapons, helmets, plaques, gas masks or other material prized by pors.
Warnings have therefore just been deposited on the historic sites of the Meuse, on trees of the Verdun forest, to educate visitors about the problem, and warn the looters of what they risk if they leave with “history pieces”, often unearthed with metal detectors, strictly prohibited in the department.
“Le Parisien” explains that this large poster campaign was created by the National Forest Office, the Grand Est Regional Directorate of Cultural Affairs and the Verdun Memorial. And that if the “scourge of illegal excavations” spreads in France, offenders risk up to 7 years’ imprisonment and a fine of 100,000 euros.
The French daily adds that it is not better to dig the soil: the risk of the worst exists with shells, even older over 100 years old …
