This is the story of an extraordinary affair. A case which, eleven years later, remains shrouded in mystery. Why, on September 5, 2012, in the middle of the afternoon, on the heights of Lake Annecy, four people were coldly executed? Who was the killer targeting? A cyclist, Sylvain Mollier, from the region, or a family of Anglo-Iraqis on vacation? Saad and Ikbal al-Hilli, and the latter’s mother, Suhaila al-Allaf, were executed in their car. The couple’s eldest daughter, Zeena, 7 years old at the time, was very seriously injured. Her little sister, Zainab, 4 years old, was deeply traumatized: it took investigators almost 8 hours to find the little girl prostrate in the car, under the legs of her deceased mother.
Dozens of avenues have been explored. None were successful. Hence the title of the series broadcast from this Wednesday on Canal +, Without outcome, the Chevaline affairtaken from the investigative book by Brendan Kemmet and Imen Ghouali, The Chevaline affairautopsy of a perfect crime, and produced with Camille Bovier-Lapierre. How can we explain the fascination around this issue? Why did all the leads turn out to be in vain? Elements of response with Brendan Kemmet.
Do you consider the Chevaline affair to be a “perfect crime”?
We can consider it as such in the sense that eleven years later, not only has the author not been identified, but we have very few indications. We are not certain of the order of execution of the victims, nor do we know who precisely was targeted: the al-Hilli, and who within this family? Or the cyclist, Sylvain Mollier? However, few cases have been the subject of so much investigation. Investigators analyzed hours and hours of video surveillance over a very wide area, tens of thousands of telephone data were examined, letters rogatory in numerous countries were requested. At the start of the investigation, more than 100 gendarmes were mobilized. There were a few police custody calls, but no leads ever came to fruition.
For a long time, however, investigators had Saad al-Hilli’s brother, Zaïd, in their sights. Both were in particular conflict over their father’s inheritance. Is this trail permanently closed?
In this case, we sometimes have the feeling that there remain problematic elements even for people exonerated. What is certain, however, is that he was not in France at the time of the murders. He was in an English seaside resort. Subsequently, investigators wondered whether he could have hired a hitman. In particular, they found some calls to Romania which could not be traced. But how would he have met a hitman and why would he have agreed to work abroad? No evidence has come to support this lead. Of course, there were money stories, but like in many families. Besides, there was very little left of the inheritance.
The trail of family revenge has been ruled out, as have those of a morals affair or data theft – Saad al-Hilli was a satellite engineer… What remains?
Lots of avenues were explored, but some could not be closed. For example, the secret service hypothesis. By nature, this is something that a traditional investigative service cannot investigate. Among the avenues mentioned, there is also that of an unbalanced killer. The perpetrator of this crime attacked his victims. Saad al-Hilli and his wife were shot four times, the girls’ grandmother was shot three times, and Sylvain Mollier was shot five times. He attacked little Zainab, he continued to hit her when she was already on the ground, hit by a bullet. Some people suggest it was an ambush. Perhaps there is a racial aspect to all this. It is an English family, of Iraqi origin.
The British criticized their French counterparts for having underestimated the local track…
The local track has long been underestimated, it was not ruled out but not a priority. For example, the search of the al-Hilli house in Claygate, [dans la banlieue de Londres] lasted hours, everything was searched down to the smallest corner. Conversely, at Sylvain Mollier, in Ugine, near Annecy, it was very quick. From the start of the investigation, the prosecutor publicly indicated that in his eyes, the response to these homicides lay with Great Britain, Sylvain Mollier was immediately considered a collateral victim. However, there are some interesting elements. For example, we discovered that an hour after the incident, a craftsman who knew the region very well was walking in the area. And interesting detail, his brother-in-law was convicted of trafficking in old weapons. This is perhaps an avenue that should have been explored sooner.
Were any errors made in this investigation?
It’s very easy to say afterwards “we should have done this or that”. For example, the presence of the little girl hidden for eight hours under her mother’s legs was based on a desire to preserve the crime scene. She was not visible, no one knew who this family was and that she had two children. Even if obviously, the consequences are dramatic. Afterwards, certain mistakes were made. For example, the fact that the belongings – and in particular the helmet – of the first witness at the crime scene, a New Zealander who was riding a bicycle, were not seized. His behavior was described as unusual by a second witness. This doesn’t mean it’s the killer, but it does allow for some verification.
What do we know today about the lives of little girls?
Few things. They live under another identity with their maternal aunt. From what we know, they are still very traumatized. They rewatch certain scenes – we must not forget that they are the only witnesses – but they have never been able to provide decisive elements for the investigation. The eldest wonders if her memories are from experience or imagination.
Are you optimistic that the investigation will be resolved?
Moderately… I think the killer’s name is in the investigation file, because we cast an extremely wide net. But the transfer of the investigation to the Cold Case unit is not encouraging. This is not a cold case: the investigations have never stopped. I see it as an admission of failure even if, obviously, there is still a lot of investigation and cross-checking to be done.
Why is the Chevaline affair so fascinating?
Because in Western Europe there are no similar cases. An entire family and a cyclist murdered. There is an international aspect, an original murder weapon – a relatively old pistol made in Switzerland. There is also a disproportion between the violence of the crime and their relatively conventional lives. Finally, there is the duration of the mystery, this creates a form of fantasy.