A man is suspected of having killed his 34-year-old wife on the night of Tuesday January 7 to Wednesday January 8, at their home in Brétigny-sur-Orge. The suspect was taken into custody for spousal murder.
The body of a 34-year-old woman was found at her home in Brétigny-sur-Orge (Essonne) on the night of Tuesday January 7 to Wednesday January 8. Her companion, aged 29, is suspected of having killed her.
• Neighbors raised the alarm in the evening
This Tuesday, the police intervened in the evening, after being called by a neighbor around 11:30 p.m. The latter told the police that he had heard screams coming from the victim’s home, located in a condominium.
“We heard noises in the evening, cries of distress, like ‘help’ and ‘rescue’”, he reported to BFMTV. “We heard banging all evening, so we called the police.”
“If we didn’t call the police at that time, it would be failure to assist a person in danger,” he assures.
Several neighbors came out into the hallway to figure out what was happening. “My neighbor across the street heard someone saying he wanted to kill his wife and children,” said another resident of the building.
The latter adds that the man shouted a lot and made “completely incoherent comments”. “He was talking about snakes… I didn’t understand anything. He was screaming, he was crazy. He was completely lost.”
The first police officers to intervene heard the cries of a woman calling for help, but were unable to enter the enclosed apartment through an armored door.
• His companion placed in police custody
When the police finally entered the apartment, they were greeted by the suspect, then armed with two knives. He was finally arrested using an electric gun, after trying to attack them. “He was talking to the police but we didn’t understand what he was saying,” said one of the neighbors who witnessed the screams.
This 29-year-old man was taken into custody for spousal murder. He is unfavorably known to the courts with three convictions between 2014 and 2016 for violence by his ascendant and driving without a license. The last conviction dates back to 2017 for violence in a meeting perpetrated three years earlier.
-The public prosecutor’s office contacted the territorial action division of the Essonne national police to continue the investigations. An autopsy of the victim must be carried out this Wednesday morning.
• Two children “marked on the face” found in the apartment
The lifeless body of the thirty-year-old was discovered in the bathroom. Two children, aged 4 and 7, were also found in the apartment. According to Aurore Bergé, Minister of Equality between Women and Men and the Fight against Discrimination, these are the victim’s daughter as well as her stepson.
The latter were for a time collected from the neighbor who called the police. They were in a state of shock, and had several bruises on their bodies. “They were marked, on their faces, you could see the marks of their hands a little,” confides the neighbor. “We gave them food, they hadn’t eaten for two days. They were traumatized.” One of them asked several times to see his mother.
The minister thanked the emergency services and the police for their intervention and welcomed the reaction of the neighbors. However, she believes that there were “malfunctions” and specifies that she will go to Essonne in the coming days.
The murder of the young woman is the third feminicide recorded in France in 2025, only eight days after the start of the year. In 2024, the ministry has recorded at least 92 femicides.
3919: the telephone number for women victims of violence
“3919”, “Violence Femmes Info”, is the national reference number for women victims of violence (domestic, sexual, psychological, forced marriages, sexual mutilation, harassment, etc.). It is free and anonymous.
It offers listening, informs and directs towards support and support systems. This number is managed by the National Women’s Solidarity Federation (FNSF).
