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M. Abdelkader HAMDAOUI Abdelkader, 24, was abducted on 27 September 2011 at 15:00 at the home of his grandmother in Rouissat, in the state of Ouargla, by several agents in civilian dress that presented themselves as the police but provided no identification. They gave no motive for the arrest and did not bring with them an arrest warrant.
These agents arrived in four white Toyota 4X4s, a type of vehicle typically used by the services of the Department of Intelligence and Security (DRS) and also by the police. The victim was taken by force and brought to an unknown location.
As soon the parents of M. Abdelkader Hamdaoui learned of his abduction, they went to the office of the security services to obtain information. On 30 September his mother went to the police station and to the gendarmerie where they confirmed that they had no knowledge of his arrest.
Following multiple attempts to obtain news of his whereabouts, the family presented itself on 4 October 2011 to the court of Ouargla and the prosecutor of the state that confirmed that this case was not under their jurisdiction and that M. Hamdaoui had been transferred to the court in Cheraga, in the state of Algier 800 kilometers away.
The prosecutor thus implied not only that M. Abdelkader hamdaoui had been detained by the security services but also that he knew in which jurisdiction he was being held. He nonetheless refused to tell the parents the motives for the arrest or inform them of the accusations against him.
On the 16 October, the family arrived in Cheraga, a community 20 kilometers from Algiers, to inquire as to the fate of Abdelkader. The prosecutor in this jurisdiction claimed that he did not recognize the name and had not had anything to do with M. Hamdaoui.
On 18 October 2011, the family returned to the court of Ouargla where the prosecutor repeated that Abdelkader had been transferred to Cheraga and that they needed to go to this district to receive news of his status. On 23 October the parents again went before the Cheraga court where they received the same response that the court had no knowledge of this case. On 8 November 2011, desperate for news, the father of the victim presented himself before the general prosecutor of the court of Ouargla who gave him the same response.
The legally permitted maximum to be held in custody is 12 days, and has been surpassed by a wide margin as M. Abdelkader Hamdaoui has not been presented before any legal authority and continues to be held in secret in a location unknown to his family. M. Hamdaoui Abdelkader is thus a victim of enforced disappearance.