The body of an infant was discovered on December 30 in Mably (Loire) in a plastic bag, along the Roanne-Digoin canal. This macabre discovery, made by a jogger, led the Roanne public prosecutor's office to open an investigation for “murder of a 15-year-old minor”, announced the public prosecutor of Roanne, Xavier Laurent, in a press release this Thursday.
Shortly before 1 p.m., a jogger noticed a black trash bag abandoned along the greenway that runs along the canal. Alerted immediately, the police went to the site to make initial findings. A team of divers was mobilized to probe the waters of the canal. Initially opened to “search for the causes of death”, the investigation quickly evolved due to the elements collected.
The baby's body was transferred to the Saint-Étienne forensic institute where an autopsy was carried out the next day, December 31. The first analyzes revealed that it was a boy. According to Xavier Laurent, “the child was of a size and weight compatible with a full-term birth”
et “did not present any malformation indicating that he was not born viable”. The autopsy also made it possible to establish
“that the body had been hidden in the bag and submerged”.
Forensic doctors have not yet been able to determine the date or causes of death, the prosecutor said. Additional examinations have been ordered to resolve these gray areas. The investigation, now reclassified as “murder of a 15-year-old minor”, was entrusted to the interdepartmental direction of the Loire national police (DIPN 42). The prosecution is continuing investigations in order to identify the victim and determine the circumstances of his death as well as possible responsibilities.
A call for witnesses
A call for witnesses has been launched. “The circumstances of the discovery of the body are such as to presume that people other than the witness who reported the facts were able to notice the presence of the body of the child or at least the black bag in which it was found”explained Xavier Laurent. The floor thus invites “all persons having information, in particular to determine the time and circumstances of abandonment of the body”to come forward to the investigators.
Information can be communicated to 04 77 93 52 98 or by e-mail to the address [email protected].
