Victim of a Crime in Agadir: How to File a Criminal Complaint in Morocco

A visitor to Agadir notices payments they never authorised after being scammed. Someone else is pushed and hit in the street and does not know whether to go to the police, the gendarmerie, or the prosecutor. A shop owner finds their premises damaged.

These situations share one thing: the person considers themselves the victim of an offence and wonders what to do, in what order, and with what evidence. Acting early and in an organised way often matters as much as how serious the incident is.

This guide is informational. It explains, in general terms, how a victim can report an incident in Agadir, what evidence to keep, and what happens next. It does not replace advice tailored to a specific case.

A person who believes they are the victim of an offence in Agadir can report the incident and file a complaint with the competent authorities, keep the useful evidence, and seek a lawyer's help where needed.

One limit is worth understanding from the outset: filing a complaint does not automatically lead to an arrest, prosecution, conviction, or compensation. The public prosecutor (procureur du Roi) assesses the facts and evidence and decides what happens next. Knowing this helps you prepare a useful file rather than expect a guaranteed outcome.

Facing an offence, it usually helps to follow a simple order rather than doing everything at once:

1. What happened? Identify the nature of the incident (assault, theft, scam, threats, damage…). This shapes the next steps.

2. Is there an urgent safety or medical issue? Health and safety come first: if you are injured or in danger, care and getting to safety take priority.

3. What evidence should you preserve? Gather and save what documents the incident before anything disappears.

4. Where can you report it? Identify the appropriate authority for your situation and location.

5. What happens next? Understand that the prosecutor assesses the file and that several outcomes are possible.

6. Would a lawyer help? Depending on the seriousness, complexity, or international dimension of the case.

7. What if the victim is a foreigner or has left Morocco? Some steps remain possible remotely, within limits that depend on the case.

This path is not an automatic procedure; it is a way to organise your thinking.

Depending on the circumstances and territorial competence, a complaint or report can generally be made to the judicial police (at a commissariat), to the royal gendarmerie depending on where the incident occurred, or directly to the public prosecutor at the competent court of first instance.

A complaint may, depending on the case, be oral or written and formally recorded. It can also be submitted through a lawyer.

There is no single entry point valid for every case: the appropriate authority depends on the nature of the incident and the location. If you are unsure which institution to approach, a lawyer can help direct the step.

It helps to distinguish procedural documents from evidence to preserve. In practice, depending on the facts, the following may matter:

• A medical certificate in case of injury.

• Photographs of the scene, injuries, or damage.

• Screenshots, messages, emails, and exchanges.

• Bank statements and proof of payment or transfer.

• Invoices, contracts, or listings that may be involved.

• The names and contact details of witnesses.

• Whether any CCTV exists.

• The identity and contact details of the suspected person, if known.

• Any document given to you by the authorities (a receipt or complaint reference).

Not all of these are required in every case, and no single item guarantees prosecution or conviction on its own. A consistent set of documents is more useful than one isolated piece.

In case of assault or injury, health comes before procedure: if urgent care is needed, seek it first.

As a matter of evidence, appropriate medical documentation can matter in describing the injuries observed. It does not determine the outcome on its own, but it helps establish an objective record of the person's condition.

Keeping care documents, prescriptions, and, where relevant, photographs of injuries helps document the situation. The exact weight of these items is then assessed according to the facts and applicable rules.

In case of a scam or fraud — a diverted payment, a service never provided, a fake listing — quickly preserving the digital material is often decisive.

Depending on the case, the following may matter: messages and conversations, proof of transfer or payment, bank statements, invoices, the listings or pages involved, and the account or contact information used.

Keep your expectations realistic: reporting a fraud does not guarantee that a transfer can be recovered. Recovery depends on many factors independent of the complaint itself. Acting quickly and documenting precisely is still worthwhile.

Filing a complaint does not automatically lead to an arrest or prosecution. The public prosecutor receives complaints and assesses what to do with them based on the facts and evidence.

Several outcomes are possible depending on the case: closing the file, further investigation by the judicial police, opening an investigation before an investigating judge in some cases, or referral to the competent court. Not all cases follow the same route.

It is therefore more accurate to see a complaint as the starting point of an assessment by the authorities than as a decision already made.

Moroccan criminal procedure is now governed by law 03.23, which amends and supplements law 22.01 and has been in force since 8 December 2025. In general terms, this reform strengthens the position of victims.

Depending on the applicable framework, the points often highlighted concern informing the victim about the progress and outcome of the case, participating at certain stages, the possibility of legal assistance, and, in some situations, social support.

The reform also provides particular protections for vulnerable victims, notably women and children who are victims of violence. These specific protections do not apply identically to every victim: they target defined situations.

Within the conditions set by the procedure, a victim may become a civil party (partie civile). This can, in some cases, allow the victim to take part in the criminal proceedings and seek compensation for the harm suffered.

Depending on the route taken, becoming a civil party may occur before the competent authority or court, and a security deposit (consignation) may be required, the amount of which is set by the relevant authority.

For an English-speaking reader, note that the "civil party" is a Moroccan/civil-law procedural concept: it means joining the criminal case to claim damages, and it is not the same as simply filing a separate civil lawsuit. Two limits are worth keeping in mind: becoming a civil party does not guarantee compensation, and the procedural conditions depend on the type of offence and the stage of the case. A lawyer can assess whether and when this step is appropriate.

For certain offences, Moroccan procedure may provide conciliation or mediation mechanisms where the legal conditions are met.

These mechanisms do not apply to every situation, and the most serious acts cannot simply be settled privately. Whether a settlement is possible, and its conditions and limits, is assessed case by case according to the law in force.

A foreign person — tourist, resident, or visitor — can generally report an offence and file a complaint in Morocco in the same way as any victim, according to the applicable rules.

The practical differences mainly concern language, documentation, the length of the stay, and coordination if the person leaves. Gathering evidence quickly and noting the references of any step taken makes what follows easier.

For a foreign victim, contacting your consulate can be practically useful in some situations; the consulate's role remains limited, however, and is distinct from that of a lawyer.

A victim who has already left Morocco can, in many cases, continue certain steps from abroad: submitting or following up a written complaint, sending documents, and instructing a lawyer in Morocco to represent them and follow the case.

The modalities depend on the case, however: the nature of the offence, the authority involved, the stage of the proceedings, and whether personal presence becomes necessary at some point.

It would therefore be inaccurate to say that everything can be handled entirely remotely. A lawyer in Morocco can indicate what, in a specific case, can be done remotely and what cannot.

For a person who does not understand Arabic, interpretation or translation safeguards may be relevant at certain stages of the procedure.

It is important to stay measured: this does not mean that every document will automatically be translated in writing. The exact scope of these safeguards is assessed according to the applicable framework and the situation. Having support can help you understand the exchanges and the documents.

Not every situation requires a lawyer, but a lawyer's involvement becomes useful when the facts are serious, complex, contested, or have an international dimension. The role is concrete:

• Giving the facts a legal qualification.

• Helping to organise and present the evidence.

• Preparing and filing the complaint.

• Handling communication and follow-up with the authorities.

• Representing the victim within the limits allowed by the procedure.

• Assessing whether and how to become a civil party.

• Framing a compensation claim where possible.

• Coordinating with a client abroad.

• Explaining how the procedure develops.

The aim is not to promise prosecution or compensation, but to organise the file and help the victim decide at the right time.

In Agadir, incidents are handled within the city's judicial institutions: the judicial police and, depending on the location, the royal gendarmerie act at the investigation stage, under the direction of the prosecution — the public prosecutor at the court of first instance.

Agadir hosts many foreign visitors and residents, which makes questions of language and coordination common when a victim leaves. Beyond that, the procedure that applies is the national criminal procedure: this guide describes a general framework, and each case depends on its own facts.

For the legal framework referred to here, the authoritative sources are the official Moroccan texts rather than commentary:

• Law No. 03.23 amending and supplementing Law No. 22.01 on criminal procedure, published in Official Bulletin No. 7437 of 8 September 2025 and in force since 8 December 2025.

• The Penal Code, for the classification of offences.

• The Ministry of Justice and the national legal-documentation portal (Adala), and the Official Bulletin (Bulletin Officiel).

Because texts can be amended, the current official version should be checked when relying on a specific rule. This guide deliberately does not cite article numbers or specific time limits that would need case-by-case confirmation.

Being the victim of an offence in Agadir raises practical questions first: where to report, what to keep, what happens next. Following a simple order — safety, evidence, the competent authority, then the course of the procedure — helps you act usefully.

The 2025 reform strengthens the position of victims, but a complaint remains the starting point of an assessment by the authorities, not a decision already made. When the facts are serious, complex, or international, a lawyer's help becomes valuable.

This guide provides general information and does not replace advice based on the specific facts and documents of a given case.