Mohamed Amra | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1994-03-10)10 March 1994 (age 31) Rouen, Normandy, France |
| Nationality | French |
| Other names | La Mouche (The Fly) Momo Yanis Schtroumpf (Smurf)[1] |
| Escaped | 14 May 2024 - 22 February 2025 (9 months) |
Mohamed Amra (born 10 March 1994), also known as "The Fly" (French:La Mouche), is a French criminal. He has been indicted for several crimes, including kidnapping that resulted in death. French police suspect that Amra is adrug lord involved in international drug trafficking and has links to organized crime gangs inMarseille.
In May 2024, he escaped from a prison van during an armed ambush that killed two prison officers, but was rearrested in Romania on 22 February 2025 after an Interpol Red notice was issued after his escape.
Amra was born on 10 March 1994 inRouen, the capital ofNormandy[2] toAlgerian parents.[3] He grew up in the Sandpit council estate of the city.[4]
Amra grew up in a troubled environment and ended up engaging in criminal activities.[5] From the age of 11 to 14, he was charged nineteen times with "carrying a prohibited weapon", "theft by trickery",extortion,drug trafficking andcriminal conspiracy, among other counts. The cases were all closed without further action from the state. He was first convicted of a crime in October 2009 at the age of 15.[6]
Since then, he has garnered 13 convictions forrobbery, extortion,criminal conspiracy, armed violence, and other crimes. In January 2022, he was jailed inÉvreux prison to serve several sentences for these convictions. Police and prosecutors have suspected Amra of heading a narcotics network and holding significant links to organized crime groups in Marseille; however, none of his convictions are drug-related.[7][5] He is not consideredradicalized or suspected ofterrorism by law enforcement.[8]
Among his convictions are anattempted murder charge.[7] In 2022, he was indicted for involvement in a gang-relatedkidnapping that resulted in death in Marseille.[2] Amra has been described byReuters as a "mid-level" player in the drug trade in France, while French media linked him to powerful Marseille-based crime syndicate "The Blacks".[7] French news agencyLe Monde has described him in the "middle-of-the-pack of the gangster hierarchy".[2] According to police, Amra has been involved in the international drug trade.[9] However, his lawyer, Hugues Vivier,[a] has disputed these accusations.[6]
On 14 April 2020, he was sentenced to three months in prison by theEvreux Correctional Court for "motorized rodeos [fr]". Two years later, on 5 January, he was sentenced to three years for several crimes, including extortion, gang theft, and burglary.[11]
On 7 May 2024, Amra was detained at the Val de Reuil prison after he was found guilty forburglary and given a prison sentence of 18 months.[12][6] The burglaries, which occurred in 2019, consisted of Amra breaking into supermarkets and restaurants and stealing around 200 bottles of alcoholic beverages and around €7,500 in cash.[4] He is suspected of usingSignal, an encrypted messaging app, to organize kidnappings and extortions through his cell.[13] He required high security during transfers despite not being seen as a high-risk inmate, with his escorts initially consisting of three guards but later being increased to five. Amra attempted to escape detention by sawing through his prison cell's bars and using tape to conceal it, but was caught by guards and placed in solitary confinement as a result.[5][9]
On 14 May 2024, Amra was being transported to Évreux prison following a court hearing in Rouen. At 10:57 a.m, the convoy was ambushed at theIncarville tollbooth on theA154 freeway, 30 kilometres (19 mi) southeast of Rouen.[12][13] CCTV footage showed a blackPeugeot 5008, which had earlier been reported stolen, ram a white prison van head-on while it passed through the tollbooth. Another prison vehicle which followed the van got stuck. Two men then exited the Peugeot, while two other men exited a whiteAudi A5 which had been following the convoy. The men, masked withbalaclavas and wearing black sports apparel,[14] began to open fire at the convoy with automatic rifles. Between 30 and 40 shots were fired at the guards, who were armed withSIG Sauer handguns.[9][7] The ambush lasted for at least two minutes, before the gunmen fled with Amra in the Audi and aBMW 5 Series vehicle,[15][8] which were later burned at other locations.[7]
Two prison officers were killed in the shooting, while three others were seriously wounded, including one in critical condition. The incident was the first time French prison officers were killed on duty since 1992.[6] One of the officers killed was described by Paris prosecutorLaure Beccuau as a "captain in the prison service".[16] One of the gunmen fired adouble tap shot into a victim's head to confirm their death.[8]
Vivier toldBFM TV that he was shocked about the jailbreak, and saw Amra as "perfectly normal". Vivier said that he would like to believe that Amra did not plan the escape as it did not match what he knew of him.[10]
Right-wing politicians said that the incident showed that thecentristFrench government could not control drug crime and compared France to other nations with rampant gang violence. Centre-right opposition leaderBruno Retailleau said, "We're on a path toMexicanisation," while far-rightMarion Marechal offered condolences to the guards and said that the ambush gave France the impression of being in athird-world country.[17]
More than 450 police officers and gendarmes were deployed inEure to take part in the manhunt for Amra and the gunmen who freed him. Roadblocks were set up in northwestern France.[10] Interior MinisterGérald Darmanin said, "We are progressing a lot" in the manhunt, and expressed hope that he could be caught in the coming days.[18] There are fears that he will attempt to cross the border into theMaghreb or Spain, according to gendarme general Jacques Morel.[19] On the third day of the search, Darmanin said that over 350 investigators were mobilized to participate.[20]
French Prime MinisterGabriel Attal vowed to find and punish the gang, saying they would "pay for what they have done," and PresidentEmmanuel Macron threatened that their treatment would be "uncompromising." Darmanin said that unprecedented efforts were being taken to ensure the gang's arrest.[21]
Interpol issued ared notice for Amra, formally requesting international police to locate and arrest him,[10][21] but clarified that it was not an international arrest warrant.[6]
On 22 February 2025, Amra was arrested in an operation by Romanian police inBucharest,[22] despite having dyed his hair red to avoid detection. He was extradited to France on 25 February.[23]
On 24 March, French authorities detained 24 people for questioning as a part of an inquiry into Amra's escape, including rapperKoba LaD, who was already in prison awaiting trial due to a fatal car accident in 2024.[24]
