Femicide in Gy: a father kills his two children and mother-in-law before taking his own life
A 42-year-old man shot his two children and their maternal grandmother in Gy, Haute-Saône, before turning the weapon on himself. He filmed the scene and sent the images to his partner.
Triple murder in Gy: a father facing separation shoots his children and their grandmother
A 42-year-old man killed his two children aged 6 and 10 as well as their maternal grandmother, 74, on Wednesday 2 September, in Gy, a village in Haute-Saône of around 1,000 inhabitants, before taking his own life. Radio France - Justice reports that the man had filmed the act and transmitted the images to his partner, accompanied by the message: "This is what you deserve."
The Vesoul prosecutor's office confirmed on Thursday afternoon, in a statement, the line of inquiry into homicides followed by suicide: "The preferred hypothesis at this stage of the investigation is that the father of the family, facing separation, would have killed the three other people before turning the weapon on himself."
Four bodies discovered on the family property
Emergency services intervened on Wednesday evening after the father himself reported having killed his children, the prosecutor's office clarifies. Around thirty firefighters and forty gendarmes deployed to the scene. They found four bodies: the two children and the man in a bungalow located on the property, and the bodies of the children in a utility vehicle parked nearby. The family was living in this bungalow whilst the father was building an adjoining house himself. The maternal grandmother had come to pick up the children at the time of the incident.
According to the initial elements of the investigation, the victims were killed using a side-by-side 12-millimetre shotgun. An autopsy of the four bodies has been ordered. An investigation into "voluntary homicide" has been opened and entrusted to the Vesoul research brigade. The crime scene was cordoned off throughout the night on the terrain, located above the village, where there are several mobile homes and caravans.
An act of family revenge
The father, a member of the Traveller community, allegedly did not accept his partner's final announcement of their separation, following several episodes of severe tensions within the couple. According to a cousin interviewed by the AFP, the man filmed the scene and sent the images to his wife with these words: "This is what you deserve", before forwarding the images to his brothers.
This tragedy resembles what specialists refer to as vicarious crime: a form of revenge inflicted on one's closest loved ones before the fatal act.
Psychological support and collective mourning in Gy
The Rectorat confirmed to ICI Besançon the opening of a psychological support unit at the Catherine-Fraischot education hub, the establishment where the two children were enrolled in school. The scheme has also been extended to the colleges in the commune.
On its Facebook page, the City of Gy announced the cancellation of festive events scheduled for this weekend: the City Awards ceremony for sport, which was to be held Friday evening, as well as the fireworks display scheduled for Saturday evening.
Source: Radio France - Justice