Suspect held over Alps murder of UK family
A SUSPECT in the unsolved murder of a British family and a cyclist in the Alps in 2012 was re-arrested by French police yesterday.
He was taken into custody for questioning at the request of a judge in connection with the killings.
Officers searched the home of the unnamed suspect, who had been arrested before over the murders.
Prosecutors in Annecy, eastern
‘We mustn’t get carried away’
France, said they were investigating his alibi and inconsistencies in his original evidence.
The mystery over who was behind the bloodbath on an Alpine road on September 5, 2012, is one of France’s most famous unsolved crimes. No one has been charged with murdering businessman Saad al-Hilli, 50, his wife Iqbal, 47, and mother-in-law Suhaila al-Allaf, 74.
The holidaying family, who were of Iraqi origin and lived in Claygate, Surrey, were gunned down as they tried to escape in their BMW.
French cyclist Sylvain Mollier, 45, also died after being shot seven times at point-blank range.
The al-Hillis’ daughter Zeena, four, hid under her mother’s body in the footwell of the vehicle and was unscathed, while her sister, Zainab, seven, was shot and beaten but made a good recovery.
Annecy prosecutor Line BonnetMathis said the suspect, who lives in Lyon, was taken into custody just after 8am yesterday morning.
She said: ‘There have been a lot of arrests in this case, so we mustn’t get carried away. I won’t be saying any more until the suspect has been heard. We must remain cautious.’
Last October, forensic officers and magistrates carried out a reconstruction at the crime scene near Lake Annecy.
Mr al-Hilli’s brother Zaid was arrested on suspicion of murder in 2013 but was not charged.
Last year, detectives said they were investigating a possible link between the murders and a bungling gang of contract killers in Paris. Pistol rounds found at the home of one member – a former police intelligence officer – were linked to bullets fired by the antique Luger P06 pistol used to kill the al-Hillis and Mr Mollier.
If the gang was involved, Mr Mollier was more likely to have been the target, investigators believe, perhaps because of tensions in his personal life.
Other possible motives include Mr al-Hilli’s life as a satellite engineer in Iraq before he settled in Surrey, and potential financial links to Saddam Hussein.