Neuilly-sur-Seine, France. French prosecutors said Eric Robic, a Frenchman linked to a 2011 fatal hit-and-run in Israel that triggered a diplomatic dispute, was shot dead on a street in the Paris suburb of Neuilly-sur-Seine on Thursday. Authorities have not commented on possible motives.
Shooting in Neuilly-sur-Seine
Judicial authorities said Robic was killed at around 9:30 a.m. (0730 GMT) in a public street. Early witness accounts described several handgun shots fired by two men riding a scooter, who fled the scene immediately.
Background and prior convictions
Robic had 12 convictions, including for financial offences. He was most well known for the 2011 killing of Israeli woman Lee Zeitouni, who was struck by his speeding SUV in Tel Aviv.
Diplomatic dispute and French trial
Robic and a passenger fled Israel within hours of the accident, triggering public outrage and a diplomatic row after France refused Israel’s extradition request under its policy of not extraditing its own nationals. The case strained Franco-Israeli relations and led to sustained political and public pressure in both countries.
Under French law, Robic was later tried in Paris. In 2014, a French court convicted him of aggravated involuntary homicide and failure to assist a person in danger, sentencing him to five years in prison.
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