SHARE
COPY LINK

CRIME

Probe after journalist’s torso found in Paris

Police in Paris have been left mystified after a woman’s torso found in the French capital last week was identified as that of a French TV journalist.

Probe after journalist's torso found in Paris
Police are investigating what could have happened to a young female journalist, whose body was found on a Paris street. Photo: Lionel Bonaventure/AFP

The decomposed and dismembered body was found in a service duct underneath a street in the 18th arrondissement of Paris on September 24th.

After spending a week trying to identify the body, Paris detectives revealed this week that the torso belonged to a 33-year-old journalist, who has been named as only as Caroline C.   

A murder investigation has been opened, TF1 reports.

According to Metro News, Caroline C had been working for France Television in Cannes, on the French Riviera.

She was reported missing on August 20th, and her employer France 3 and her family both said they had not heard from her in a long time.

According to Le Parisien, the journalist had been on sick leave for several months, due to “psychological problems”.

Police sources also told Le Parisien they are investigating a mysterious burglary at the woman’s home in the 18th arrondissement.

“On September 18th, one or more strangers went into her home to steal her phone, a digital tablet and her purse,” a source close to the case told Le Parisien. “Those close to her thought she had gone back to pick up her things before leaving.”

Police then noticed that a camera, which was not in her apartment several days before the burglary, then mysteriously reappeared.

“The camera is currently being examined, but for the moment we cannot explain this strange fact,” a source told the paper.

The remains of Caroline C were discovered near Bichat hospital, where she had reportedly received treatment for "mood disorders". She was identified only through her fingerprints.

As police try to determine what may have happened to Caroline C, friends and family have paid tribute to the woman, who is originally from Alpes-Maritimes region of southern France.

“She had a huge heart and helped many homeless people. She suffered a lot in this life. She was such a lovely person, always sensitive and always spoke from the heart,” said her father.

Don't miss stories about France – join us on Facebook and Twitter

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.

CRIME

French police search for gunmen after shootings in Paris suburb

French police were searching for gunmen after three people were killed in drug-related shootings in the Paris suburb of Sevran over the weekend.

French police search for gunmen after shootings in Paris suburb

Two men were shot dead near a cultural centre in the Seine-Saint-Denis suburb, to the northeast of the French capital on Sunday evening, less than 48 hours after another fatal shooting nearby, according to authorities.

The victims of Sunday’s shooting were aged 35 and 31 and known for violence and drug trafficking, according to police sources.

One was shot in the head, with two suspects fleeing on foot, leaving the magazine of an automatic weapon and 18 spent bullet casings behind them.

The second man was hit six times.

The town of 52,000 people was on edge, mayor Stephane Blanchet told AFP, saying people were living in fear of another shooting.

“There is a huge feeling of fear, that it could start again and [that someone could be hit by] a stray bullet,” Blanchet said.

“If it had been a beautiful sunny day, there would have been more people outside,” when the latest shooting happened, he said.

In the first shooting, a 28-year-old man was killed on a nearby housing estate early on Saturday, with three others wounded.

In March, French President Emmanuel Macron announced an ‘XXL’ cleanup of drug trafficking in the southern port city of Marseille and other towns across France, including Sevran, where the drugs trade has been blamed for a spate of death and violence.

One drug dealing hotspot in Sevran was ‘eradicated’ in that operation, police said.

“We are aware that when we do that, we destabilise traffic, we create greed and sometimes there are clashes,” Paris police chief Laurent Nunez said on Sunday.

“But we will still continue,” he added.

Local La France insoumise MP Clementine Autain accused the government of abandoning some areas, and said the suburb, “did not have the police presence of other areas”.

Drug-related violence has often flared in Sevran – considered a hub of drug trafficking in France – with the then-mayor calling for UN peacekeepers to be deployed there in 2011.

SHOW COMMENTS