annecy shootings theories

The local prosecutor, Eric Maillaud, has described the killing of Iraqi-born Saad al-Hilli, 50, his wife, Iqbal, and her mother as an "act of gross savagery". The theories based around this case can essentially be divided into two camps - the lone psychopath theory, and the targeted assassination/contract killing theory. [22], On 18 February 2014, a 48-year-old man was arrested following the issue of an artist's impression of a man in a motorcycle helmet. Here are the the brief circumstances of the 5th September that year. . . . ", The Mirror's story also reported the existence of a family dispute over an inheritance "worth more than 1.2m". Hiding In Plain Sight: The Murder Of Peter Thurgood and Lindy Benstead. Perhaps, they both got killed because they were in fact, working together? The factory in Ugine primarily crafted components for nuclear reactors. This pistol was tested by various countries and widely exported to the USA in a commercial version, but was mainly adopted by the Swiss army until the middle of the 20th century after being slightly modified for the last time in 1929 (P06/29). He initially worked as a lawyer, but eventually branched out into selling building materials - bricks and cements, and further down the line, tissue paper and even poultry. I never told the family they were being watched.". The bodies were discovered by Brett Martin, a British ex-RAF pilot, who is a resident in France, while he was out riding his bicycle. The only thing this poor young girl was able to publicly say about her recollection of events was there there was noise, and she was scared.. In essence, these responses are neither denials nor confirmations. [5], The investigation is being carried out by the section de recherches des Savoie (Criminal Investigation Department) of the National Gendarmerie, based in Chambry, together with the Institut de recherche criminelle de la gendarmerie nationale of the National Gendarmerie, located near Paris. They also say they have no real leads but plenty of theories. Police are looking into whether a suspected serial killer could be behind the unsolved Alps murders. On Thursday the Evening Standard reported that there had been a series of hold-ups involving masked attackers 50 miles away. However, something interesting happened in April 2014. Murdered 2012 Murdered, Unsolved, Familicide, Mass Murder, Shot Brett Martin was on a bike ride on September 5, 2012, when he happened upon a rest stop on the Route Forestire Domaniale de la Combe d'Ire near Lake Annecy. Your email address will not be published. As he pulled up he was aware of a BMW car backed into a parking area. Connections to al-Hilli's previous work at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory are also being investigated. Eric Maillaud, the prosecutor in Annecy in 2012 said the 4-year-old girl who survived the shootings could not help their investigation because she was hiding under her mothers legs during the killings. It would be wrong not to. While its technically not impossible that someone tailing them managed to remain outside the field of vision of every CCTV camera along the Hillis path, it is incredibly unlikely. No one has ever been brought to justice over the brutal murders, which prompted a search of the family's home in Claygate, Surrey. On a late summer afternoon in 2012, three members of the al-Hilli family from Britain, and a French bicyclist named Silvain Mollier, were brutally executed along a popular tourist road in the picturesque Combe-D'Ire Forest near Lake Annecy in France. He left a letter behind, in which he wrote that he couldnt handle being a suspect in a murder. This was curious, because Patrice hadnt, in fact, been a suspect in a murder - he had been in effect a character witness. Although the Luger P06 was sold commercially in the US, and was adopted by various militaries in Europe during the 20th century, nowadays its mainly considered to be a collectors item. Unsurprisingly, the Saddam Hussein link was quickly denied by French authorities - The head of the murder investigation, Gendarmerie Colonel Benoit Vinnemann, said quite plainly: This is false. [14] In January 2014, it was announced that there was insufficient evidence to bring a charge against Zaid al-Hilli and his bail was lifted. James himself of course couldnt have been at the scene of the crime, and no evidence has arisen that he hired someone to go after his ex-wife, or that perhaps someone who disapproved of their relationship had decided, years later, to enact revenge. As a former military man who it seems, perhaps had some mental issues, he could fit the profile of the lone psychopath that the police were searching for - it was Patrice, in the woods, with the gun, who then committed suicide under the weigh of his own guilt and the misplaced belief that the police were on to him. But she would always stop for a chat particularly with my wife. [5] Initial reports stated only one semi-automatic pistol was fired, though it was later reported that full ballistics analysis was likely to disprove this. The idea could be that there may have been a paid assassin involved. I have to say this crime is so well publicised that you only need to look on Google and you will be reading for a week. One relates to the disappearance and death of an eight-year-old girl, Malys de Araujo, in August 2017 at a wedding where the suspect was a guest; the other to the killing of a hitchhiking soldier in April of the same year. However, there are currently four theories with some credibility, variously saying that it was a racist killing, a robbery, the consequence of a family dispute or that there was a national security connection. Given his general health (he was overweight, had high blood pressure, he smoked), this news wasnt exactly what one would call shocking. Its the timing that gives some people pause - what are the chances of a secret ex-husband dying of a coronary mere hours after his ex-wife was killed in a still-unsolved crime with no apparent motive behind it and no clear suspect? "I thought they were from special branch. French police confirmed on Friday morning that this was one of the theories they were investigating and that they were working with their British counterparts on this. Your email address will not be published. Three members of a family from Surrey were killed near Lake Annecy along with a local . While this case is most commonly known as The Annecy Shootings, they technically took place in the tiny town of Chevaline, located on the southern tip of Lake Annecy. The lone psychopath, in other words. So, to sum up: no reason to believe anyone knew that the Hilli family or Sylvain Mollier would be where they were on that day, no particular reason to believe that anyone would target them, and no other leads in this lone psychopath theory. The answer to that question is the lone psychopath theory, the theory thats become the most popular with investigators in recent years. Two months later, Patrice shot himself in the head. "French police have been cracking down on these gangs but there have been isolated and organised incidents from particular gangs in particular areas.". . I have linked a longer, more detailed look, at the is incredible case below. [20], It had been suggested that the target of the murders may have been Sylvain Mollier, instead of the al-Hilli family. Annecy shootings: Suspect arrested then released over unsolved 2012 murders. Either way, Kadim retired and returned to England in 1982. And what is certain is that somebody wanted to kill.". Some have taken to calling it the perfect crime - somehow, someone managed to murder 4 people in the middle of the day on a public road and get off scot-free for 9 years and counting. In 2020, the al Hillis' daughters were set to be re-interviewed, and last year investigators returned to the murder scene, near the village of Chevaline. .She was a wonderful housewife and mother as far as I could see. The shooter had specifically targeted the windows of the car, leaving the bodywork virtually unscratched. It has been reported that he was shot seven times. I was wrong. The Swiss bank account that supposedly was linked to Saddam Husseins political party does in fact exist, but is very likely nothing more than the bank account of a successful businessman. Investigation of the crime scene turned up very little helpful information. "When Mr al-Hilli came out and drove off, they would follow him. The al-Hillis' two daughters both survived the attack. Although unconfirmed by the police, some reports named the suspect as Zaid al-Hilli, the brother of Saad al-Hilli. During an interview with reporters, James also dismissed the rumors of conspiracy around Saad and his familys deaths, saying I think if there had been something bubbling up like that (a conspiracy) I would have known it.. Annecy shootings: second child found alive in car eight hours later. They did not just come upon the scene. And what is certain is that somebody wanted to kill." On the afternoon of 5 September 2012, an attack took place just off of the Route Forestire Domaniale de la Combe d'Ire, a quiet mountain road in southeastern Franc The police, in this case, certainly did try to pursue this lone psychopath theory. The unsolved murder of four adults and the attempted murder of a child was the situation that faced French cops in September 2012. Sometimes known as the Pearl of the French Alps, the city lies on the northern tip of Lake Annecy, and is surrounded by the gorgeous mountains of the French Alps - an idyllic location that unsurprising has become a rather popular tourist destination for both the French and foreigners alike. This was not true. [38], Hogg & Weeks, Krause Publications, USA, 2000, Institut de recherche criminelle de la gendarmerie nationale, "Chilling similarities: Massacre of British family in French Alps echoes mass shooting of three Brits in same region 60 years ago", "Father Murdered in French Alps 'Known' To British Security Services", "The true story behind Murder in the Alps as Channel 4 launches new al-Hilli documentary", "French Alps shootings: single weapon was 7.65mm pistol, say investigators", "France shooting: British victim 'was selling second home', "Alps shootings: Bomb squad leave Hilli family home", "French Alps shooting: photographs taken minutes before murders", "Alps murders: Annecy squad to join forces with Surrey Police", "French Alps murders: Brother arrested over Al-Hilli killings", "Al-Hilli killings: Man arrested in connection with Annecy family murders", "Tuerie de Chevaline, les enquteurs s'intressent au casque du motard", "French Alps shootings: victim's brother faces no further action", "France shooting: was Saad Al-Hilli assassinated over secret defence contract? One of the reasons given was that the killer used a pre-World War II Luger P06 semi-automatic pistol, a weapon unlikely to be used by a professional assassin. [10], A 54-year-old man was arrested on 24 June 2013 in Surrey in connection with the murders. Furthermore, he suggests that the reason French investigators brushed Sylvains potential as the intended target under the rug was to make it seem as though this horrific crime originated outside of France, rather than being a local problem. "It's not that we have no idea; we have many ideas, many hypotheses, all of which are being looked at, but there are no real leads at the moment. Brett Martin, an ex-Royal Air Force pilot who was residing in France at the time, came across the ghastly scene while out riding his bike - although he arrived shortly after the shooting took place, he hadnt heard the gunshots, likely because he was still across the river from the location of the shooting when it took place - water, as it turns out, can mask the sound of gunshots quite well. This theory, however, was also dismissed by Eric Maillaud - the British tabloids, it appears, had gotten some key facts wrong about Claires millionaire status, namely that she didnt actually yet have ownership of her fathers pharmacy at the time of his death, but was instead in the process of buying it. Three months after the murders, British tabloids reported that Molliers girlfriend Claire Schutz, had recently become a paper millionaire after ownership of her fathers pharmacy had been transferred over to her. Zaid was released the next morning on bail, and throughout the next few months of investigations, no evidence for Zaids guilt ever surfaced. So, working under the assumption that this was a targeted attack, and that Saad al-Hilli was the main target, we can look to his background to see what the potential motivation for these murders could have potentially been. Investigators had explored several theories for the quadruple murder, such as a family feud or al-Hilli's work as a . On a late summer afternoon in 2012, three members of the al-Hilli family from Britain, and a French bicyclist named Silvain Mollier, were brutally executed along a popular tourist road in the picturesque Combe-D&#39;Ire Forest near Lake Annecy in France. Up to 25 ( some accounts say 15 others 21) spent cartridges from an automatic pistol were found at the scene. The nature of the killing has given rise to speculation about who might be able to dispatch an assassin to the French Alps. 7 Sept 2012. James said that Saad had helped him fix his car up, and that they had both worked together to build the workshop in Saads garden. It has been established that Hilli worked as a computer-assisted designer for the firm Surrey Satellites, which is owned by the large defence and engineering contractor EADS.. On Thursday a family friend and fellow engineer, James Matthews. The doors were locked. Our police are co-operating and everything that is found will be shared. The case has international ramifications with links tying the slain family to Britain, Iraq, Sweden, and Spain. I thought progress had been made recently so I didn't write an article on them. To this day, the stories of Saad al-Hilli, Iqbal al-Hilli, Suhaila al-Allaf, and Sylvain Mollier remain unresolved. The 67-year-old told the Mirror: "He had family in Iraq and I know he was worried about their safety and spoke to them on the phone. . The elder daughter, aged 7, was shot in the shoulder and also suffered a head wound; she returned to the United Kingdom on 14 September 2012. Since his suicide in June 2014, Patrice Menegaldo, an ex-French Foreign Legion soldier from Ugine, has been positioned very high on the list of suspects. I am referring to the Legionnaire from Ugine. Police reported that recordings of phone conversations between Saad and Zaid pointed towards their relationship being more volatile than Zaid painted it. A terrible case of a family enjoying the splendour and a man out on his bike when a lunatic decides they are his that day? Generally, the theories revolving around this being a targeted assassination paint Saad al-Hilli as the main target, with his family being mere collateral, and the French bicyclist Sylvain Mollier being an unfortunate bystander who was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. One theory suggested Mr al Hilli had been attacked because of his job as an engineer, while another focused on a row over a family will, but no definite motive was established. Four-year-old Zeena hid for hours in the footwell under her dead mother's legs, while her sister, Zainab, seven, was shot in the shoulder and beaten in the head. The man, living in the local village of Lathuile, and said to be a weapons collector, reportedly had been dismissed from the municipal police in June 2013. Their approach was somewhat haphazard. See, in early September, police had searched the Hilli family home and found something they found suspicious - a taser. The children have not been able to help much with the investigation other than to say there was one shooter. The Annecy shootings, also the French Alps shootings or the Chevaline killings, were the deaths on 5 September 2012 of three members of a British family and a French citizen on the Route Forestire Domaniale de la Combe d'Ire near Chevaline, Haute-Savoie, France, near the southern end of Lake Annecy.. Four people were killed: an Iraqi-born British tourist named Saad al-Hilli, 50; his wife . Instead, he claimed that the only reason investigators latched onto Saad as the prime intended victim was simply due to his race, saying: I think this was a declaration of war against us. The Annecy Shootings True Crime All The Time Unsolved. And what is certain is that somebody wanted to kill."On the afterno She was not discovered for many hours as she crouched under her mothers legs. In fact, this was the main line of thinking for quite a while - after all, looking at the puzzle pieces and adding in a splash of bias and common assumptions, a targeted attack against Saad al-Hilli would likely be the first thing to come to mind for many. The so-called "affaire de Chevaline" ("Chevaline case") has remained a mystery for nearly ten years. Police have been unsure whether the al Hillis or Mr Mollier - who worked in the nuclear industry - was the target. It was unusual, especially in the 90s, for Iraqi Muslim women to marry Americans, and would have been controverisal on both sides at the time - as Maillaud put it, people have exploded families for less than that.. Add to that the fact that the taser was capable of jolting someone with 50,000 volts and the fact that Saad had actually been killed by an unknown assailant, also suggested that him owning this taser certainly wasnt nothing. When he reappeared, he had clearly been tortured, with permanent brain damage and slurred speech to show for it - one can hardly blame Kadim, then, for wanting to move his family to a different country after seeing a loved one go through that. Lone psychopaths are, to put it frankly, incredibly rare - the vast majority of murders are committed for a reason well beyond random person feels like killing a stranger for no particular reason. Random killings do happen, however, and given the fact that every other lead in this case led to a dead end, this theory has to be considered. Twenty-five shots were fired in total. A person has been arrested in the unsolved case of three members of a British family and a cyclist shot dead in the French Alps more than nine years ago. [1] They have stated that he could have been targeted over a contract he was working on for EADS. Listen to "The Annecy Shootings" on Spreaker. One of the biggest pieces of evidence that the lone psychopath theory could be legitimate in this case is quite simply, that neither Sylvain Mollier or the Hilli family had any intention of being up on that mountain road that day. Prosecutors also charged Lelandais with the killing of Arthur Noyer, a 24-year-old soldier, who vanished after hitchhiking from a disco in Chambry on 12 April 2017. Read more. "[36], French President Franois Hollande said "I expressed my emotion earlier today to the British people in relation to the terrible deaths. Saad al-Hilli, along with his wife Iqbal, were both Iraqi-born British nationals, who had been living in the UK for over 20 years - according to a family friend named James Matthews, Saad had told him that his family had moved to the UK in the 70s after their mechanical engineering business was viewed unfavorably by Saddam Husseins Baath party. Patrice Menegaldo also left behind a 7-page suicide note, of which the part where he claimed he couldnt handle being a suspect in a murder was only a small part - investigators havent released the remaining contents of the note, likely for privacy reasons. Four people lost their lives that day, while two of the Al-Hilli children survived . Publicly available information about Saads line of work is somewhat nebulous - he apparently worked as a freelance computer-aided design engineer, and helped with designs for the Airbus A380 aeroplane. [34], British Prime Minister David Cameron said: "Obviously the faster we can get to the bottom of what happened, the better. Patrice was 50 years old, he lived in Ugine (where the factory Sylvain previously worked at was located), and he was a former paratrooper in the French Foreign Legion. French Alps shootings: robbery, feud and Iraq war link among theories. [32][33] However, he was released after prosecutors said the man had been ruled out as the killer. His brother was arrested and investigated but no charges followed and he always denied any major infighting over money. French cyclist Sylvain Mollier, 45, also died after being shot seven times. The Telegraph noted that France was much more relaxed than the UK about civilian gun ownership. The motorcycle rider has been reported as having a goatee beard and an unusual helmet by French investigators. British angler catches orange carp nicknamed 'the Carrot' on fishing trip to France, Walrus seen miles from Arctic habitat in Normandy, northern France, The Terminal: Man who inspired Tom Hanks film after living in airport for 18 years dies. The estate was a sizable one. 01:13:25; On a late summer afternoon in 2012, three members of the al-Hilli family from Britain, and a French bicyclist named Silvain Mollier, were brutally executed along a popular tourist road in the picturesque Combe-D'Ire Forest near Lake Annecy in France. The theory of a lone killer driven by psychopathic, religious or racial hatred is, perhaps, one of France's worst fears in the aftermath of the Annecy shootings. Does This Look Suspicious To You? While its of course possible that this was the work of a lone psychopath who truly had no motivations beyond simply killing for the fun of it, the lack of suspects combined with the fact that Saad al-Hillis job back in the UK apparently involved sensitive topics have led to a number of speculations, rumors, and actual theories alike swirling around this tragic story. Saad al-Hilli hadnt rented a car in France - rather, he had put his family car on the ferry and carted it over to France the week before the murders. Both the French and the British family have been impacted by this terrible event and we will do our utmost to find the perpetrators, to find the reasons behind that event. The picture painted of Hilli so far by friends and neighbours is of a hard-working family man with a love of caravanning who was a respected member of the suburban Surrey community he made his home less James Bond, more Terry Scott. Police were forced to lift Zaids bail conditions in January 2014, leaving them once again starting from scratch. It is not clear whether the investigators thought he could be involved in the killings. His background seemed to have no hint of drama that could have prompted that amount of violence. 00:35:17 - "I won't say it was professional, what I will say is it was tremendous savagery. Also, straight away, I wonder why shoot him at any point when others were near? Annecy is a small city in the Auvergne-Rhne-Alpes region in southeastern France, quite close to the borders of both Switzerland and Italy about 22 miles south of Geneva. Today, well dive into the many theories and speculation surrounding this horrific crime - however, first, lets backtrack and take a look at what exactly happened on September 5th, 2012, in Annecy, France. Nordahl Lelandais, a 34-year-old ex-soldier, is the main suspect in two other cases in the area. Before he was shot dead he told police he had killed the servicemen in retaliation for the French army's involvement in Afghanistan and killed the Jewish victims in support of Palestinian Muslims. [15], Police investigating the shootings are following several leads relating to the activities of Saad al-Hilli. One Whitehall source suggested caution. Another twist suggested he was involved in laundering money from Saddam Husseins regime. In the near 10 years since the attack, many leads have been followed and many theories have been proposed as to who did this and why - however, to this day, no one has been found guilty of the crime, and investigators still have no working theory to explain the motivations behind these killings. [citation needed] On 10 September, the Royal Logistic Corps bomb disposal unit were called to the home of al-Hilli in Surrey after concerns were raised about items discovered during the police search, although the items under investigation were later described as "non-hazardous". It was also said that Saad al-Hilli was an engineer involved in highly sensitive projects. Louisiana, 1978/79, The Overwhelmed Case Of Missing 16 Year Old Mirella Gregori, Rome, 1983, Who Is The Man Found On Sulphur Mountain In 1998? French investigating authorities are not yet saying outright whether they believe it was a targeted or a professional killing, instead describing the way in which the killing happened as "strange modus operandi", which appears to mean that it is not obvious why the attack happened. The Annecy shootings, also the French Alps shootings or the Chevaline killings, refers to the shootings on 5 September 2012 of a British family and a French citizen on the Route Forestire Domaniale de la Combe d'Ire near Chevaline, Haute=Savoie, near the southern end of Lake Annecy.. Four people were killed: an Iraqi-born British tourist named Saad al-Hilli, 50, his wife Iqbal, 47, her . [23][24][25] It was later shown that the policeman's DNA did not match the two samples found in the vehicle of the victims. No charges have been brought against the person who was questioned, Annecy's public prosecutor said in a statement. "I won't say it was professional, what I will say is it was tremendous savagery. Earlier this year the Foreign Office warned tourists about an emerging "pattern of incidents" in this part of France after gangs appeared to be targeting foreign-registered cars on highways. [5] This might be because he was crossing the last river bridge just a few hundred metres from the murder location; the noise of the water easily masking the sound of gunfire. A coincidence? There is huge sensitivity in the UK, more so than in other countries, in talking about anything to do with national security. Online records show that Hilli was also a director of a Swindon-based company offering "business services, aerial photographers and surveys services". One of them is a French national, the other 3 foreigners, one of whom was an Iraqi engineer who supposedly had access to sensitive information, and theyd all been shot twice in the head executioner-style. Saad and Iqbals two young daughters thankfully survived the attack. His girlfriends father had suggested a biking route to him, but Maillaud says this route more than likely involved taking an easily-missed sharp left at the base of the mountain (perhaps the same turn that the Hilli family had been meant to make), rather than biking straight up it. This theory, however, was also dismissed by Eric Maillaud - the British tabloids, it appears, had gotten some key facts wrong about . According to BFMTV, the individual, who is a married man, has already been questioned over the case. Three of the victims were found inside the BMW in a wooded area on an isolated mountain road from the village of Chevaline. Required fields are marked *. [29] Police assume that Menegaldo committed suicide because he thought of himself as being a suspect, even though police admitted not to have had him as a primary suspect when they spoke to him in April 2014. This British man, William Brett Martin, had been passed by another cyclist earlier on. What Zaid was suggesting, of course, was that if there was an intended target, it was the French victim, Sylvain Mollier, not the foreigners on vacation who didnt normally spend time in Annecy. The brutality of the murder of three members of a British family holidaying in the French Alps, a near fatal beating and shooting of the family's seven-year-old child and the killing of a fourth witness who happened to be cycling past has put intense pressure on the French police to find a perpetrator. Similarly, it seems likely that Sylvain Mollier had also gotten a bit turned around during his bike ride that day. Like all of the other many angles considered in investigating this crime, theres a very high likelihood that its absolutely nothing at all, just yet another dead end - and yet, even if its nothing, its still an interesting coincidence. . When Brett came across the scene, the Hillis seven-year old daughter, Zainab, who had been shot and critically injured but not killed, was stumbling in the middle of the road, and collapsed in front of the familys car. [5], The French cyclist killed near the car was Sylvain Mollier. He also apparently had links with Guildford-based Surrey Satellite Technology. They were just nice people. [18], In October 2012, Swiss prosecutors stated al-Hilli had visited a bank in Geneva shortly before he was murdered. He heard nothing of the shots. The motive behind the deadly attack on a British family still seems unclear, but speculation has followed diverse paths, Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning, Cheverlaine near Annecy in south-eastern France, where the bodies of Hilli family members were found. In the next sentence, they say it had nothing to do with the French cyclist. Even if security officials did monitor the Hilli family during the war, this may not mean the family was necessarily seen as a threat. As Eric Maillaud put it, many murders can be linked to one of two motives - sex or money. What we have here is four people dead, an extremely unusual crime, to say the least, for Annecy. We have a real suspect. However for the moment there appear to be no definitive leads. Philip Murphy, a neighbour of Hilli in Claygate, Surrey, was quoted by the paper as saying he thought special branch used his driveway during the war to monitor Hilli's house. A gunman sprayed their BMW with bullets at point-blank range in a lay-by. Seven year old Zaineb, who had fallen near the road, had been shot in the shoulder and beaten yet she survived. The wheels were spinning as it was hung up on sloping ground behind it. "[35] He also said, "I have spoken to the British ambassador in France and consular staff are working very hard so that we do everything we can and to find out what happened in this very tragic case. Four people, three of the same family, were brutally assassinated near Annecy in Franc. The Annecy Shootings. Iqbal and Saad both killed in the ambush. There are many theories as to why this group was killed. Annecy shootings: Arrest in unsolved case of British family and cyclist shot dead in French Alps in 2012. Ahead he saw a bicycle on its side in the road. Most likely. Either way, Sylvain Mollier also had no plans and no reason to end up on that particular mountain road on that day. And so thats where were left when looking into the background into the two most likely intended targets in this case, Saad al-Hilli and Sylvain Mollier. The familys BMW had been sharply reversed into the side of the road prior to the attack, to the point where visible marks were left on the road. This content is not available in your region, Annecy shootings: Suspect arrested then released over unsolved 2012 murders, One year on, France remembers 27 migrants who drowned trying to cross English Channel, Holocaust denier from France detained in Scotland after two years on the run, UK-France agreement on migration met with scrutiny by those on the ground. The bodies of the Iraqi-born engineer, his dentist wife, her mother and the cyclist were discovered on a remote forest route. The brutal murder of the al Hilli family - who were on a camping trip - made headlines in . French Alps shootings: robbery, feud and Iraq war link among theories. [8] The search did yield a Taser, an item that is illegal to possess in the UK. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Both brothers, naturally, were in disagreement over who should get what. Mr Saad al-Hilli, 50, was said to have been involved in a dispute with his brother over their fathers will. Kadim decided to move his family to the UK in 1971, after his brother was arrested by the Mukhabarat (the Iraqi intelligence agency) and disappeared for a year. These workers had gotten a good enough look at him to give information to an artist who created a sketch of the mysterious motorcyclist. I thought progress had been made recently so I didnt write an article on them. Well, those two statements contradict each other, you know, at least 50 percent.. Prior to the incident, the BMW was reversed sharply into the side of the lay-by, leaving marks which were still visible when the site was reopened to the public. However, while its interesting to speculate on the role Molliers work could have played in his death, as well as potential connections between Mollier and Saad, public prosecutor Eric Maillaud sums up this line of thinking quite well in one simple phrase: For a novelist, its an amazing story.. [26], In 2015, the motorcyclist spotted nearby the incident, and sought by the police, was traced and ruled out of the inquiry as an innocent passer-by.[27]. He adored them. His wife was very quiet.. she wasn't as gregarious as Saad. 45 year old Sylvain Mollier had been shot multiple times. What the prolificness of this theory in Britain made clear was that each country - France and Britain - wanted the problem to have originated in the other country. On a late summer afternoon in 2012, three members of the al-Hilli family from Britain, and a French bicyclist named Silvain Mollier, were brutally executed along a popular tourist road in the picturesque Combe-D'Ire Forest near Lake Annecy in France. Veronique Dizot, the lead prosecutor, suggested that the family "may have been targeted randomly".[4]. Their bodies were found in a car on a remote mountain road, while Al-Hillis two young daughters survived the shootings. French police have said the brutal murder of three members of a British family holidaying in the French Alps, together with the shooting and near-fatal beating of their seven-year-old child, bears . French Alps shootings: robbery, feud and Iraq war link among theories. Your Help Is Welcome, Route Forestire Domaniale de la Combe d'Ire. Something Needs Updating? The other main theory based off of the idea that Saad was the main target is much closer to Earth, and involves one of the most common motivations for murder - family disputes and inheritance money. The road is so remote and shrouded in trees he could have easily been attacked without anyone else being involved. "We are going to look at all the disturbing disappearances which have taken place in this region," Dran told reporters. Still, not every piece quite fits. At the time of Saads death, he and his brother Zaid hadnt spoken in about a year, except through lawyers and solicitors helping them to sort out their late father Kadims affairs. The attack claimed the lives of four people - Saad al-Hilli, his wife . A couple of vehicles were seen in the area. The detectives had never accused him of being complicit in the murders, he was never in custody, and there was no evidence whatsoever connecting him to the crime. In June 2013, 9 months after the murders, French authorities presented Zaid with a summons ordering him to appear in France as a witness - Zaid refused, claiming he didnt trust them or their reasoning for summoning him to France. Annecy shootings: Arrest in unsolved case of British family and cyclist shot dead in French Alps in 2012. Some even speculated that perhaps Saad and Mollier - the supposed nuclear technician and satellite engineer - were in cahoots, and that it wasnt coincidence that they ended up on that same mountain road together on that day. James was a former cop and oil field worker, and had once been married to a woman by the name of Iqbal - the same Iqbal who later moved to England and married Saad al-Hilli, and who was murdered in the Alps that day. Where does that leave us? "I watched them [the officers] from the window and they were watching Mr al-Hilli and his brother," Murphy told the Mail. Local authorities described the area the shooting took place in as a picnic spot, a place where people often went for walks. On a late summer afternoon in 2012, three members of the al-Hilli family from Britain, and a French bicyclist named Silvain Mollier, were brutally executed along a popular tourist road in the picturesque Combe-D'Ire Forest near Lake Annecy in France. The Case Of Jean Johnson New Mexico, USA. The Vieille Ville, or Old Town section of the city dates back to Roman times, and the canals that wind through this area of the city have earned it another nickname, the Venice of France. Surrounded by vibrant nature and centuries of history, Annecy isnt the type of place youd associate with violent crime - unfortunately, however, since 2012, Annecy and the surrounding area has been associated with The Annecy Shootings, of one of very few random gun attacks in modern French history. It was there the former British RAF pilot saw a 7-year-old girl in the road. 41 votes, 31 comments. . The brutal murder of the al Hilli family - who were on a camping trip - made headlines in . Often this event is referred to as the Annecy Shootings or the Chevaline Killings. Often this event is referred to as the Annecy Shootings or the Chevaline Killings. Saad al Hilli, 50, was killed with his wife Iqbal, 47, and mother-in-law Suhaila al Allaf, 74, on a road near Annecy on 5 September 2012. Police investigated al-Hilli's past in Iraq as an engineer on sensitive topics, as well as his work at the time of his death, as a potential motive for the attack. She was found inside the car about eight hours after the shootings. Still, that doesnt necessarily mean that Sylvain couldnt have been the intended target for some other reason. While working their way through a list of just about everyone Sylvain Mollers girlfriend, Claire Schulz, had ever known, police stumbled across a man named Patrice Menegaldo, who they called in and interviewed for about an hour as a tangential witness - just someone who maybe might have known something about Sylvain that police hadnt already found out. The Schutz family, the papers reported, was growing increasingly irritated by Molliers mooching off of his girlfriends money without contributing anything in return - he had recently taken a 3-year leave from his job at the Ugine factory, after all. In Annecy, a child witnesses . The family had been at that spot enough time for the shooter to have realised their presence. One was traced but the other is still outstanding. The conclusion seemed obvious - Saad had gotten got, the others, especially the unrelated Sylvain Mollier, were simply unlucky enough to be there when Saads past caught up with him. And what is certain is that somebody wanted to kill."<br>On the afternoon of 5 September 2012, an attack took place just off of the Route Forestire Domaniale de la Combe d'Ire, a quiet mountain road in southeastern France, near Lake Annecy. Given that nugget of information, its not difficult to spiral it out into a tale that ends in Molliers murder, with the Hilli family in this case being the unfortunate bystanders. Take Care and thanks to Dominique for suggesting this case. And what is certain is that somebody wanted to kill."<br>On the afternoon of 5 September 2012, an attack took place just off of the Route Forestire Domaniale de la Combe d'Ire, a quiet mountain road in southeastern France, near Lake Annecy. The gang tried to steal a Ford Fiesta and a Peugeot and police were investigating whether there was a link between the incidents. But what about money? This attack resulted in the deaths of 3 British tourists - 50-year old Saad al-Hilli, his wife Iqbal, age 47 at the time, and her mother Suhaila al-Allaf, age 74, as well as French cyclist Sylvain Mollier, age 45. She was stumbling into the road and collapsed in front of the British family's BMW car. Menegaldo had for seven years had an affair with Mollier's sister and knew Mollier's partner, Claire Schutz. To put it bluntly, what gives? A neighbour of the Hillis, Jack Saltman, said he had reported a family-related problem to the police but gave few details as to what it might be. Al-Hilli's eldest daughter, seven-year-old Zainab, was the first victim he saw when he arrived on the scene. [30] Investigators probing the de Araujo case found that Lelandais' cell phone had been in the same area at the same time as Arthur Noyer. So was this a planned and calculated murder for financial gain? A subreddit dedicated to the unresolved mysteries of the world Diving further into the familys background, the supposed links to Saddam Hussein come more through Saads father, Kadim, rather than through Saad himself. Annecy shootings: second girl found alive in car eight hours later. Also I thought it had been resolved as to a motive. There have also been a number of theories based around Saad al-Hilli's Iraqi ethnicity and his work he does computer-assisted design engineering that have led some to speculate over whether the killing was the work of an intelligence agency, or linked with one. Brett Martin, the man who discovered the bodies, was also briefly considered a suspect, but his story and background were investigated and nothing suspicious came up. The al-Hilli children -- then aged 4 and 7 -- were the only witnesses to the killings. First, as the prospect of war with Iraq loomed, they would have been searching for anyone who may take retaliatory action. The Daily Mail spoke to Hilli's accountant, Julian Stedman, who described his accounts as "straight up". This report apparently originated from the German secret service, and potentially linked Saad with Saddam Husseins missing fortune. The victims - Saad al-Hilli, Iqbal al-Hilli, Suhaila al-Allaf, and the French cyclist Sylvain Mollier, were all shot in the middle of the head, a fact which immediately led to fears that this may have been a contract killing. Security cameras at the ferry terminal, as well as at gas stations and along the highway that the family had taken down to Annecy, as well as in and around Annecy itself, were scoured for any signs that the family was being followed, but no vehicle or motorcycle ever appeared more than once in the footage alongside the Hillis, indicating that they indeed were not followed. Sex, it seems, could be dismissed - although Mollier had a bit of a reputation as a playboy in his younger days, he had been settled with his girlfriend for over two years, and there didnt seem to be any jealous boyfriends or husbands lurking in the sidelines who would have reason to slaughter Mollier and four other innocent people. Ballistics analysis would reveal that the gun used in the attack was a Luger P06 semi-automatic pistol - a gun which you may recognize if youve ever seen a film set during one of the World Wars. After James Thompson drove off from work that day, the same day his ex-wife was mysteriously killed thousands of miles away across the ocean, his truck slowed down and went off the road - James Thompson had died behind the wheel due to a massive coronary. Saad al-Hilli, his wife Ikbal, and his mother-in-law Souhaila al-Allaf were shot while on holiday in the French Alps near Annecy in September 2012. Original music created by Micheal Whelan through Amper Music, Theme music created and composed by Ailsa Traves, https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2012/09/07/french-alps-shooting-dead-father-saad-al-hilli-known-to-security-services_n_1863530.html, https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-23975138, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/may/23/alps-victim-had-family-feud-over-1m-inheritance-says-brother, https://www.lemonde.fr/societe/article/2012/10/29/tuerie-de-chevaline-le-pere-d-al-hilli-lie-au-parti-baas-selon-bild_1782780_3224.html, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/sep/10/french-alps-shootings-single-weapon, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/sep/10/alps-shootings-police-hilli-home-live, https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03fgstr, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jan/15/french-alps-shootings-victims-brother-no-further-action, https://www.france24.com/en/20121005-swiss-bank-link-alps-murders-annecy-chevaline-claygate-shooting-al-hilli-investigation, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/feb/18/alps-murders-former-policeman-arrested-village-shootings, https://www.gq.com/story/alps-murder-chevaline, https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2012/09/06/french-alps-shooting-francois-hollande-police-utmost_n_1861895.html, https://www.connexionfrance.com/Archive/Chevaline-murder-police-seize-guns, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/sep/06/french-alps-shooting-live, Kimberly Riley & Jeremy Britt-Bayinthavong, Paul Skiba, Sarah Skiba, and Lorenzo Chivers, June & Jennifer Gibbons (The Silent Twins). The prosecutor has said 25 gun cartridges were also found inside the family vehicle. After moving to the UK, Kadim returned to Iraq in 1974 to oversee his business, which is a fact that conspiracy theorists pointed to as suspicious - however, Kadim did in fact own a business that was located in Iraq, and dictatorship or no dictatorship, the economy was still chugging along and businesses still needed to be run. [21] A police source stated that Mollier, a local father of three who worked as a welder in a workshop at a subsidiary of Areva, "doesn't appear to have been exposed to nuclear secrets". ", "Nuclear link to French Alps massacre: Murdered Saad al-Hilli worked at top-secret British lab", "France shooting: Family feud may have led to executions in the Alps", "Police probe Swiss bank link to Alps murders", "Leaked Report Links British Family Murdered in Annecy to Saddams Millions", "French police: cyclist may have been target of Annecy slaughter", "Police suspect 'lone psychopath' in French Alps killings", "Alps murders: ex-policeman arrested in village near scene of al-Hilli shootings", "Ex-policeman arrested over al-Hilli family murder charged with trafficking weapons", "Alps Massacre: Mystery of missing motorcyclist solved, two years later", "French Alps murders: Suicide Foreign Legion soldier top of al-Hilli suspect list", "Alps shootings: French Foreign Legion soldier 'top of suspect list', "Nordahl Lelandais, suspect in Malys de Araujo murder case, 'may be serial killer', "France to reopen Alps murder investigation of al-Hilli family after possible serial killer charged", "Man arrested over 2012 killing of British family and French cyclist in Alps", "Annecy shootings: Arrest in unsolved case of British family and cyclist shot dead in French Alps in 2012", "Alps murders: Man released without charge over 2012 killings", "France shootings: Three victims shot in head", "Francois Hollande: Police Will Do Their 'Utmost' To Find Family's Killer", "The true story behind Channel 4's Murder in the Alps", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Annecy_shootings&oldid=1096415288, This page was last edited on 4 July 2022, at 09:50. Join Mike and Gibby as they discuss this mysterious shooting. Before we wrap this up, there is, believe it or not, one final angle to consider, in a case that has so many angles to consider that it sometimes feels like an infinitely reflective prism. The tourists stop their car and while one gang member distracts them, another steals from their car. Saad took suggestions from a local man as to where to go, but it seems as though the family got lost somewhere along the way, and once Saad was on the Route Forestire Domaniale de la Combe d'Ire, he had no way to turn around until he reached the parking area about 3 kilometers up the road. At about 3.45 pm an ex RAF pilot was riding his bike along Route Forestire Domaniale de la Combe dIre. This was the roadside shooting murder of Sir Jack Drummond and his wife Lady Anne. Four people lost their lives that day, while two of the Al-Hilli children . 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