Nanny’s killers convicted
is haunted by the death of his “irreplaceable” daughter.
“I try to think of Sophie the last time I saw her – happy and smiling, but sometimes I cannot block out the horror,” he said.
Precious childhood memories have been “replaced with the sound of my baby’s voice full of fear and thick with tears”.
He added: “I have these terrible images in my head. I try not to think about what they did to Sophie but I have been through hell.”
Recorder of London Nicholas Hilliard, QC, requested a psychiatric report on Kouider before he sentences the couple next month.
The murder bears the hallmarks of a psychosis known as folie a deux – the madness of two – defined as a delusion or delusions shared between one individual and another.
Depressive, bi- polar sufferer Kouider was the driving force and weak Medouni the willing accomplice.
Extreme examples of folie a deux include serial killers Fred and Rosemary West.
horror when two evil fantasists combine their delusions
THE murder of Sophie Lionnet bears all the hallmarks of a psychosis known as folie a deux.
“Madness of two”, it is defined as a delusion spread from one individual to another.
The French first coined the phrase, but one of the most infamous examples involved best friends Pauline Parker and Juliet Hulme.
The pair were just 15 years old when they murdered Pauline’s mother in cold blood in New Zealand in 1954. The friends lived out elaborate fantasies together, and their parents had become worried about their dependant relationship.
After Juliet’s parents split, the girls were set to be separated but Pauline’s mother took the girls on a last outing together. They ended up brutally killing her.
The crime inspired Kate Winslet’s 1994 film, Heavenly Creatures. Cases of the phenomenon are mostly likely to involve siblings or couples.
The crucial necessary factors are social isolation and a difficult- to- break connection between the two people.
Dr Ruth Tully, consultant forensic psychologist said: “It is reported that Kouider had borderline personality disorder.
“If Medouni was passive or easily led, or simply desired attention from her, it is entirely possible that he was swept away with her strong beliefs.”