The Paris Court of Appeal has upheld the pre-trial detention of an Algerian consular official who has been placed under formal investigation in connection with the 2024 abduction in France of Algerian opposition figure and influencer Amir Boukhors, widely known as Amir DZ.
The Court of Appeal’s Investigative Chamber confirmed the earlier ruling issued by the Judge for Liberties and Detention (JLD), in line with the recommendations of the Paris Prosecutor General’s Office. Prosecutors argued that releasing the suspect would pose several risks, including the possibility of witness intimidation, collusion with other individuals involved in the case, threats to public order, and flight from French territory.
This position differs from that of the National Anti-Terrorism Prosecutor’s Office (PNAT), which had supported the consular official’s release under judicial supervision following a request filed by his defense on June 10. However, the Judge for Liberties and Detention rejected that request on June 18, a decision the official subsequently appealed.
The case comes at a time of strained relations between Paris and Algiers. Amir Boukhors’ lawyer, Éric Plouvier, recently expressed concern that the detained consular official could be used as a bargaining chip in the case of French journalist Christophe Gleizes, who was sentenced in Algeria to seven years in prison for « glorifying terrorism » after being arrested in May 2024 while reporting in the Kabylie region.
According to Plouvier, any exchange involving his client and the French journalist would set a dangerous precedent by legitimizing prisoner swaps between states at the expense of judicial independence.
The investigation into the abduction and attempted assassination of Amir DZ—which his legal team attributes to the Algerian authorities—as well as the detention of Christophe Gleizes, have further heightened tensions between Paris and Algiers. Relatives of the French journalist are now hoping that Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune will grant him a presidential pardon.
However, according to multiple concordant sources, Christophe Gleizes is reportedly not among those expected to benefit from a presidential pardon by President Abdelmadjid Tebboune.
The same sources claim that this decision is linked to the opposition of General Saïd Chengriha, Chief of Staff of the Algerian National People’s Army (ANP), to the journalist’s release. They further allege that the Algerian consular official implicated in the Amir DZ case is a military officer attached to Algeria’s foreign intelligence services and was serving in Paris at the time of the alleged events.