Brother on trial for complicity in France killings testifies

PARIS (AP) — The older brother of a French jihadi who killed Jewish schoolchildren and soldiers in 2012 says he had no idea what his sibling was plotting.

Abdelkader Merah testified Friday for the first time in his trial for alleged complicity with his brother Mohammed’s three attacks in and near Toulouse.

Merah is the chief surviving suspect because Mohammed died in a shootout with police.

He said he was with his brother the day he stole the motor scooter used in the killings, but didn’t report the theft to police because he didn’t want to be a snitch.

He insisted: “I’m not Mohammed Merah, I am Abdelkader Merah. There is a big difference.”

The brother of one of the seven victims said he was upset by what he perceived as Merah’s ‘cold expression” in the courtroom.