Two people, a woman and a man of Algerian origin, are presented to an investigating judge on Monday in Paris with a view to an indictment for murder and rape with acts of torture and barbarism, after the discovery on Friday in a trunk of the body of Lola, a 12-year-old schoolgirl.
A judicial investigation was opened on Monday for murder of a minor under the age of 15, in connection with a rape committed with acts of torture and barbarism, and concealment of a corpse, said a judicial source.
The prosecution has requested the remand in custody of the two suspects, she added.
The 24-year-old woman, considered the main suspect, was arrested at dawn on Saturday in Bois-Colombes (Hauts-de-Seine). The suspect had been seen on the images of the surveillance cameras of the building where the schoolgirl lived.
A witness also reported the presence of this woman, who would have requested her help for a fee to move a bulky trunk, according to several media.
Aged 43, the man who must also be presented to a magistrate during the day, is suspected of having hosted and conveyed the suspect.
The parents of the teenager, worried about not seeing her return from college on Friday afternoon, had alerted the police to the disappearance of their daughter, as well as the presence of this unknown young woman in the residence, located in the 19th district of Paris.
It was finally a 42-year-old homeless man who discovered an opaque plastic box containing the body of the teenager, in the interior courtyard of the building where Lola’s family resides.
The body of the schoolgirl was concealed by fabrics, according to sources close to the file. Two cabin suitcases were placed next to the trunk.
The autopsy performed on Saturday determined that Lola had died of asphyxiation, according to a source familiar with the investigation. The first findings had reported significant neck wounds.
“Terrible ordeal”
A total of six people were taken into custody as part of the investigation by the Criminal Brigade of the Parisian judicial police.
Four of them have been released without prosecution at this stage.
Multiple investigations were carried out in order to establish the sequence of events and the motive of the perpetrators.
During the weekend, many residents showed their sadness and fear by placing flowers on the gate of the residence of the victim’s family and a low wall leading to the building.
The rectorate announced the establishment of psychological support cells for students and for staff at the college where Lola was educated and schools in the area.
Monday morning, the mayor of the 19th arrondissement, François Dagnaud, went to the Georges-Brassens college where Lola was educated. “This college, this school community and an entire neighborhood are going through a terrible ordeal”he said.
The mayor has tried to allay the fears expressed by parents in the neighborhood since the announcement of the discovery of Lola’s body.
“What is important is that the main suspect, a priori, is arrested and that there is not a psychopath who is walking in the streets of this otherwise completely calm neighborhood” , added Mr. Dagnaud, “that a 12-year-old child can die in these conditions (…) overwhelms everyone”.
A psychological cell will be offered to the inhabitants of the district “because the emotion is at its height”announced the mayor.
The mayor of Paris Anne Hidalgo went to the college to meet the educational community, the town hall said.
The Minister of National Education, Pap Ndiaye, participated in a minute of silence in the teachers’ room of the establishment, then in the 5th grade class of Lola, according to the ministry.