This terrible murder of a young child marked Rouen in the 19th century

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Supervisor at Rouen prison (Seine-Maritime), Jean-Pierre Machain released a new book on crimes and cold cases in Normandy. This is a continuation of his previous work on which we produced a series of articles in 2021.

We find there around thirty criminal caseshalf of which are cold cases (unresolved cases) throughout Normandy. The work begins with a mysterious crime that occurred in 1872 on the Canteleu road.

“One of the most talked about cases”

“This is the first time I’m telling it,” explains the author, who leafed through all the press of the time to retrace this story. “It’s simple, it’s one of the cases that has generated the most ink in the local press. »

One December evening in 1872, around 9 p.m., Justine, a young woman of 22, accompanied a 10-year-old child on the road to Canteleu. Both work at the cotton twisting factory in Rouen. “They were attacked by a man, the young boy was killed by several blows with a bladed weapon,” says the author.

The young woman, brutalized, is found unconscious in a ravine along the road.

Later that evening, a Canteleu resident noticed a mark of blood on the road and heard moans below. “He alerted people in the village, and that’s where they found the little boy dead and the young woman unconscious,” continues Jean-Pierre Machain. She will survive.

Rumors fuel the investigation

“The beginning of the investigation revolves around the rumor,” explains the writer. Thus, a man will be accused because, the day after the crime, he had his hair and beard cut. As if he didn't want to be recognized.

The accusations also target a person who threw himself into the Seine, again a few days after the incident.

Another man, discovered with scratches on his face, is also targeted by the investigation. “In the end, we learned that he had injured his face while doing work,” says the author.

A bloodstained shirt found in the forest

The investigation takes a big step forward when bloodstained clothes are found in the Canteleu forest. “There were gray wrapping papers around this fireplace which corresponded to what young schoolchildren had at the time”, relates Jean-Pierre Machain. So who owns this shirt?

The investigations focus on Adolphe Neveu, the foreman of the workshop in which the brutalized young woman and the killed child worked. “What gave him away was that he had a brand new shirt the day after the crime, and it was something unusual,” emphasizes the writer.

All the testimonies then point towards him. He was arrested in January 1873 at the factory. The trial takes place in June.

The trial

A witness said he saw a person hobbling in the area the evening of the crime. This approach corresponds to that of Adolphe Neveu. In addition, the wounds on the child's body suggest a tool used by spinners.

The brutalized young woman appears during the hearing and confirms that the murderer is indeed Alphonse Neveu: “I would sign it with my blood. »

The accused denies it outright and cites as a defense “that it is a set-up”. “I have a clear conscience,” he told the courtroom. Adolphe Neveu will indeed be found guilty of the murder of the child and the attempted murder of the young woman. He will be imprisoned at Bonne Nouvelle prison in Rouen.

Sentenced to capital punishment, he narrowly escaped the scaffold. “The president at the time Patrice de Mac Mahon was not in favor of the death penalty,” explains Jean-Pierre Machain. The criminal will finally be sentenced to forced labor in New Caledonia, and will spend the end of his life on the island.

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