Lyhanna case: new rape complaint filed against Jérôme B., father of an 11-year-old daughter testifies
A new rape complaint against a minor was filed on Wednesday against Jérôme B., the suspect in Lyhanna's disappearance in the Gers. The father reports buttock touching during a sleepover party.
New rape complaint targeting suspect Jérôme B. in the Lyhanna case
A new complaint for "rape" was filed on Wednesday 3 June at the gendarmerie in Auch against Jérôme B., 41, the main suspect in the disappearance of Lyhanna, 11, in Fleurance, in the Gers. According to ladepeche.fr, it was the father of another 11-year-old child who filed this complaint, alleging acts committed during a sleepover party at the end of August 2025 at the suspect's home in Montestruc-sur-Gers.
"There were three or four young girls present at this party," Nicolas, the father of the new complainant, told ladepeche.fr. "My daughter, who is under child protection services in the Gers, reported the facts in February 2026 in the course of a conversation with another child as part of another case. At first, my daughter told me about touching, hands on her buttocks when she was coming out of the water."
Reports accumulating since the arrest
Jérôme B. was remanded in custody on Monday 1 June, after being put under investigation for "abduction and unlawful confinement of a minor under 15 years old". He was the last person to see Lyhanna alive: the girl got into his vehicle on 29 May, at around 3 pm, before disappearing. Since his remand in custody, revelations against him have multiplied.
A first complaint for "repeated" rapes of another minor had already been filed on 25 August 2025 by a mother to the gendarmerie in Plaisance-du-Touch, in Haute-Garonne. This file was passed from one service to another before arriving at the gendarmerie in Fleurance in January 2026. According to the suspect's lawyers, Jérôme B. was never questioned in the framework of this procedure.
Judicial delays in question
The public prosecutor of Toulouse, David Charmatz, provided explanations on the handling of this first file. "An interview of the minor was conducted by the family protection unit within the paediatric reception unit for children in danger at Purpan, in Toulouse, according to protocol. Her entourage was also interviewed. Forensic medical and psychological expert assessments were carried out," he stated. Charmatz clarified that the file had been transmitted to the public prosecutor's office in Auch "at the end of October-beginning of November, because it is the only one competent due to the place of the facts and the home address of their perpetrator". The alleged rape period covers the years 2024 and 2025.
This delay has provoked anger from Nicolas. "I don't understand why we have to wait for a young girl to disappear for things to be taken seriously!", he declared. He added: "With what is happening today, my daughter asked me to go file a complaint and that's what I'm doing, I was told about inappropriate gestures."
A concerning profile known since 2021
Investigators from the research section are gradually seeing a worrying profile emerge. As early as 2021, Jérôme B. had been the subject of a first report when he was working as a maintenance worker at the secondary school in Lectoure, in the Gers. The school's manager had terminated his contract after he exchanged messages with secondary school girls, describing his behaviour as "inappropriate".
In Montestruc-sur-Gers, he was regularly seen in the company of young secondary school girls in the years preceding Lyhanna's disappearance. The girl herself had mentioned "tickling" by Jérôme B. during the sleepover party at the end of August 2025. Her parents had then decided to distance themselves from this man, father of two children, one of whom is a friend of Lyhanna.
Suspect silent before investigators
Since his being put under investigation and his incarceration on 1 June, Jérôme B. has remained silent before investigators and the investigating judge. The new complainant, Nicolas's daughter, should soon be interviewed by investigators from the research section. Lyhanna, who disappeared on 29 May, has still not been found.
Source: Google News LU FR