Autopsy: 11-year-old schoolgirl Lyhanna was raped before her death in the Gers
The autopsy results of young Lyhanna, found dead in a grain silo in the Gers, reveal that she was raped. The suspect, a man in his forties with a long criminal history, had never been questioned despite previous reports.
Autopsy: 11-year-old schoolgirl Lyhanna was raped before her death in the Gers
The autopsy conclusions for Lyhanna, 11 years old, confirm that the schoolgirl was raped before she died. The exact cause of death, however, was not established, sources close to the investigation told the AFP news agency on Thursday. The case has provoked widespread emotion across France, with gatherings held in several cities.
The child's body was discovered six days after she went missing, buried in a grain silo in Puycasquier, in the south-west of the country. The main suspect, Jérôme B., a 41-year-old man in whose vehicle the victim was last seen, is currently in provisional detention and remains silent during questioning by investigators. He is already the subject of four complaints for rape, some of which concern minors. In the past, he had been targeted by several reports of sexual assault against children.
One circumstance is fuelling public anger in particular: this same individual had been reported for rape of a young girl as early as summer 2025, but the judicial authorities had never summoned him for questioning. This failure led President Emmanuel Macron and several members of the government to acknowledge serious malfunctions within the judicial system. Despite these admissions, Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin has kept his post.
Faced with the scandal, the French executive intends to strengthen a child protection bill already in preparation. The measures being considered include harsher sentences for repeat offenders and a requirement to open an investigation within three months of any report of abuse involving a minor.
An independent commission tasked with examining sexual violence against children (Ciivise) has further denounced "systemic errors" in the way French justice handles these offences. According to its findings, more than six out of ten cases result in a decision not to prosecute. The conviction rate for perpetrators of these crimes reaches only 3 per cent, which reflects, according to the report's authors, "a systemic malfunction of our judicial system".
This commission, created in 2021, had formulated 82 recommendations at the end of 2023. Its recent assessment shows that only 28 per cent of the recommended actions are fully in effect.
The issue of sexual violence against minors has also emerged in recent months in Paris, where 52 employees of after-school care facilities have been suspended since the start of the year, suspected of acts of "sexual or sexist violence".
Source: Spiegel
Source: Google News LU DE