The Assize Court of Haute-Garonne is examining Friday, July 1 on a case with twists and turns more than 35 years old: the disappearance at the end of 1986 of Martine Escadeillas, then aged 24, in a suburb of Toulouse.
Read alsoJustice: the new “cold cases” center is already raising concerns
The accused, Joël Bourgeon, a friend of this secretary and her companion, confessed to having killed her before recanting.
His lawyer says he is “
determined to ask for his acquittal
” during this trial, which is due to last until Wednesday July 6.
On the other hand, the sisters and brother of Martine Escadeillas, convinced of the guilt of the accused, hope that he will tell the hearing where the body is.
Bald head
On December 8, 1986, Martine dropped off Thierry, her companion, at a bus stop around 8:30 a.m.
She immediately returns home to Ramonville, a residential suburb of Toulouse, then disappears.
The presence of blood in the stairwell and the testimony of a neighbor immediately suggest an assault.
This neighbor claims in particular to have heard cries and to have seen a man in his forties, with a bald head, squatting on a woman.
These statements will guide part of the investigations, before the investigators come to the conclusion, years later, that this neighbor could not have seen the scene clearly enough to describe it as precisely.
For the lawyer of the Escadeillas family, Frédéric David, "
this testimony has polluted the investigation
".
Among others, Joël Bourgeon does not fit this description.
He is exonerated, just like Thierry, who has an alibi.
Several other tracks, including the possible involvement of serial killer Patrice Alègre, were examined, before being also abandoned.
Stopped in 2019
In 2016, a letter from an acquaintance of the missing woman relaunched the Bourgeon trail.
The accused and Martine's companion played football together, went on motorbike trips and had been invited to lunch with Martine's parents the day before she disappeared.
A few weeks after this disappearance, Joël Bourgeon leaves unexpectedly to settle in Lyon, without coming forward to Martine's family.
In the Lyon region, then aged 23, he had a love affair with a 16-year-old girl, with whom he would remain for five years.
Read alsoLaunch of the court specializing in “cold cases”
In 2019, he was arrested in Lyon.
While in police custody, he confesses to having killed Martine and gives the gendarmes details of the murder.
For investigators, these details could only be known by the murderer.
Joël Bourgeon retracts a week later, saying that his confession was dictated to him by the gendarmes.
Since then, he has been in preventive detention.
According to his former companion, he spoke of Martine with admiration and asked her to do her hair like her to look like her.
“Rest with dignity”
Eric Mouton, Joël Bourgeon's lawyer, notes the absence of "
concrete elements
" against his client.
He recognizes that “
confessions always raise questions, even if they were obtained without a lawyer
”.
However, he considers that these statements by the accused are "
full of contradictions
" and do not establish his guilt.
On the other hand, from the moment when the testimony which guided part of the investigation more than 30 years ago is discarded, other leads should be reopened, concerning people other than Joël Bourgeon, according to Mr. Sheep.
Read alsoMurders, rapes and kidnappings: details of the cases relaunched by the new “cold cases” center
For her part, Nicole Saint-Blancat, the sister of the disappeared, hopes that this trial will allow Joël Bourgeon to designate the place where the body of the disappeared is.
“
If he goes back on his confession, he will free his conscience again.
If he says what he did with Martine's body, he will be better off and his pain will be reduced
,” she explains.
The family, she adds, would then succeed in "
finding Martine's body so that she can rest with her parents, with dignity
".