Lawyer for Suspected Paris Attacks Terrorist: ‘He Has the Intelligence of Empty Ashtray’

The sole surviving suspect of the Paris attacks is using an unique defense strategy. His lawyer told a newspaper in France that his client, Salah Abdeslam, “has the intelligence of an empty ashtray.” Abdeslam was extradited from Belgium to France where he is being held in solitary confinement in a maximum security prison in the Paris area, according to BBC News.  He is believed to be behind the November 13 Paris attacks that killed 130, and injured many others. His attorney, Sven Mary, attempted to paint Abdeslam as merely a follower and a ‘little moron” who wasn’t aware of what he was doing.

“He is the perfect example of the GTA (Grand Theft Auto video game) generation who thinks he lives in a video game. I asked him if he had read the Quran, and he replied that he had read its interpretation on the internet,” his attorney said, according to the Business Insider.

Abdeslam was captured in Brussels in March after being on the run for four months. He is suspected to have played a key role in planning the Paris attacks, including renting the cars and safe house, buying explosive materials, and picking up other suspects. He has also been linked to the March 22 suicide attacks that killed 32 in Brussels. Abdeslam is expected to appear before investigative judges on Wednesday, where more charges could be filed.