The family of murdered Sophie Toscan du Plantier say they will accept whatever findings Irish forensic scientists make on foot of a series of new DNA tests on exhibits from the near 30-year-old investigation.
Ms Toscan du Plantier’s uncle, Jean Pierre Gazeau, said the family fully supports the decision by the Garda Serious Crime Review Team and Forensic Science Ireland (FSI) to engage US DNA collection experts irrespective of what the move yields.
Mr Gazeau said he was interested to see that the Garda and FSI had decided to avail of technology provided by M-Vac Systems to examine exhibits including the stone and concrete block used to murder his niece in west Cork in 1996.
“I think it is the last chance for the Garda – unless, of course, some witness comes forward with new evidence. But even then, they may retract their story, which has happened before, but DNA evidence is objective and scientific and definitive, so it is a welcome development,” he said.
READ MORE
Mr Gazeau, president of the Association for the Truth about the Murder of Sophie Toscan du Plantier, said he did not want to speculate, but that the latest approach could produce a number of different scenarios.
“They may find nothing but obviously if they find DNA and it does not match that of Ian Bailey, then it has the ability to clear Bailey of any culpability,” he said.
“But even if it means the outcome is not what we expect ... it is a scientific outcome, and we must respect that finding and accept it because DNA testing is very definitive. We await with interest to hear from the Garda on what the scientists find.”
Mr Bailey, an English journalist, was twice arrested in connection with the French film producer’s murder, but was never charged, and repeatedly protested his innocence before his death last year at the age of 66.
He was convicted in his absence at a trial in Paris in 2019 of the voluntary homicide of Ms Toscan du Plantier and sentenced to 25 years in jail. However, attempts by French authorities to have him extradited to serve the sentence were shot down by the Irish courts.
M-Vac Systems chief executive Jared Bradley and a scientist from the firm travelled to Dublin last month with their equipment and spent a week examining various exhibits gathered during the original Garda investigation into Ms Toscan du Plantier’s murder.
The 39-year-old’s badly beaten body was found on the laneway leading to her isolated holiday home in Toormore near Schull on the morning of December 23rd, 1996.
A postmortem revealed she had been bludgeoned to death with a rock and a concrete block.
As well as the cavity block and rock, gardaí from the cold case review team based in Bantry brought several exhibits to the FSI laboratory for examination by the M-Vac team including Ms Toscan du Plantier’s dressing gown, leggings, vest and boots.
Investigators are hoping that any DNA evidence obtained will enable FSI scientists to make comparisons with DNA samples taken during the original Garda investigation from about 10 people, including Mr Bailey, identified as suspects at the time.
