Me Matthieu Chirez, associate lawyer at the Parisian firm JP Karsenty, defends the interests of the British Thornton family. Their 11-year-old daughter, Solaine, was murdered on Saturday June 10, 2023 in the family garden of Saint-Herbot, a hamlet in the village of Plonévez-du-Faou, in Center-Finistère. He learned at the beginning of the week of the death of Dirk Raats, the main suspect, as we revealed on Monday November 25, 2024.
The accused had been ill for several weeks with a fairly pessimistic prognosis. This is the reason why justice allowed him to leave detention by leaving the Hermitage remand center, in Brest (Finistère) to reach the hospital where he took his last breath, Friday November 22, 2024 .
For Me Matthew Chirez, “when the main accused of a crime dies as is the case, there is necessarily an element of frustration since we deprive ourselves of a legal debate and a trial, while we aspire to manifestation of the truth.
“Go to the end”
However, the lawyer is not sure that the accused “taking into account his state of health and his personality, would have provided a large number of relevant insights”. But the advice of Rachel, Adrian and Céleste Thornton emphasizes that this death “must absolutely not prevent us from continuing to support the whole family. Lawyers, gendarmes, psychologists and investigating judges must remain mobilized, especially when we see the quality of the work carried out.”
Even without an assize trial, the investigation continues. “The companion of the deceased will be judged (Editor's note: for failure to assist a person in danger, as we revealed in July 2024)even if we are talking about a misdemeanor, and not a crime: that does not take away from the need to go to the end”, Dear Me Chirez.
According to our information, the announcement of the death is very difficult for the Thornton family. Her companion, Adrian, being very diminished since the tragedy, the mother, Rachel, must “carry a lot of things alone” according to a source close to the matter.
