Uncle confesses to family murder

THE brother-in-law of a Frenchman who went missing with his wife and two children more than a fortnight ago has admitted killing all four family members, Nantes prosecutor Pierre Sennes said yesterday in a case thought to centre on a dispute over an inheritance.

Pascal Troadec and his wife, Brigitte, both 49, their son Sebastien, 21, and daughter Charlotte, 18, had been missing since February 16 in a mystery that gripped the nation.

Suspicions had initially centred on Sebastien, who had suffered psychological problems and had been ordered to carry out community service in 2013 for making death threats on his blog.

But the focus shifted after traces of his uncle’s DNA were found at the Troadecs’ home in Orvault, a suburb of the western city of Nantes, and in Sebastien’s car.

The man, whose name has not been released, had already been quizzed for nearly 21 hours at the start of the probe, when he told investigators he had fallen out with the family over a dispute about an inheritance.

One investigation source said yesterday he admitted the argument over divvying up the large inheritance was the motive for the murders.

He and his wife, who is Pascal’s sister, were taken into custody in the port of Brest on Sunday.

The man was to be charged and jailed later yesterday, Nantes prosecutor Pierre Sennes said.

The role of his wife remains unclear, with a source close to the inquiry saying she maintained her silence on Sunday.

The murders were carried out in especially “sordid” conditions, a source close to the probe said.

Initial searches at the Troadecs’ home found traces of blood from Sebastien and the parents, but not from Charlotte, as well as signs of efforts to clean them up.

Investigators also found Sebastien’s cellphone and his mother’s watch covered with blood.

A judicial probe into murder, abduction and illegal confinement was opened on February 27, 11 days after Brigitte’s sister raised the alarm.

Few clues had emerged since the family’s disappearance.

The first breakthrough came on March 1 when a jogger found a pair of grey jeans in a forested area near the Brittany town of Dirinon, near Brest, that contained Charlotte’s national health card.

Search teams with sniffer dogs have been combing the area, which is 280km northwest of Nantes.

Divers have also taken part in the search because the zone lies between two estuaries.

The next day, two children’s books belonging to Pascal were found some 500m away in the area near where the suspect and his wife once lived.

Investigators found Sebastien’s car in the port of Saint Nazaire, some 60km from the parents’ home.

Sennes said on Friday the perpetrator might have sought to plant clues in a “morbid treasure hunt”.

Before the arrests, police said in a February 24 bulletin that Sebastien was suspected of “putting in place a macabre plan aimed at snuffing out the members of his family and maybe himself”.