The Brussels Court of Assizes on Tuesday began hearing from several direct witnesses to the fatal shooting on 20 August 2020, at Place Adolphe Sax in Ixelles.
A local resident said he saw one of the shooters and one of the injured clearly. The witness said he also saw another person on the ground, who was being kicked and punched, “by three people as I remembered.”
On trial are Jason Yaramis and Rayan Messaoudi, accused of involvement in a shooting incident in which one man died and another was wounded.
The events date back to August 2020.
On August 20, 2020, at around 2:06pm, a police patrol found Steven Kumba, aged 23, seriously injured on Avenue Auguste Rodin in Ixelles. He had been shot twice in the right buttock. The victim was rushed to the nearby Ixelles hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
The initial investigation revealed that the shooting took place at the Marguerite Yourcenar Square and the Adolphe Sax Square, and that another person was injured. The latter, Ali Dandach, was admitted to hospital with a gunshot wound to his left foot.
The day after the incident, investigators learned that Jason Yaramis and Rayan Messaoudi were involved in the shooting. The suspects were arrested on 14 and 15 September 2020, after surrendering.
According to Rayan Messaoudi’s statements, he had a conflict with a man named Yassine Amrouch, regarding a cannabis deal. On 20 August, the two men met at Place Adolphe Sax to discuss their dispute. They fought and Rayan Messaoudi, armed with a revolver, fired a shot that landed near Yassine Amrouch, without injuring him. Steven Kumba then tackled Messaoudi to the ground.
Jason Yaramis, armed with a Glock pistol, said he intervened to defend Messaoudi, his childhood friend. He fired, he said, hitting Steven Kumba and Ali Dandach.
