the criminal trail is ruled out

Marie-Paule Albet, 77, was found lifeless in the Branches forest (Yonne) on January 9, four days after her disappearance. This Thursday, January 23, the Auxerre public prosecutor confirmed that the criminal trail had been ruled out.

The autopsy delivered its conclusions, around ten days after the discovery of the jogger’s body. According to the findings of the forensic doctor, there is “no evidence of a criminal origin“of the death of Marie-Paule Albet, the public prosecutor of Auxerre (Yonne) Hugues de Phily confirmed on January 23. For the moment, the exact causes of death, however, remain unknown.

This resident of Appoigny disappeared on January 5. She went running in the Branches forest, not far from her home, but she never returned. At 77, she was nevertheless very sporty: she was registered with an athletics club and notably ran the 10 km of the AJA marathon in October 2024.

► ALSO READ: Death of Marie-Paule, jogger found in a “very difficult to access” area in the forest: what we know

Widely relayed on social networks, the disappearance of Marie-Paule sparked a wave of support from Internet users. The searches organized in the days following his disappearance also brought together almost 100 people, indicated the mayor of Appoigny Magloire Siopathis.

During the search, the gendarmes found a telephone at the entrance to a forest path, probably taken by the missing woman while jogging. Marie-Paule’s children had formally identified it as belonging to their mother.

Finally, the body of the retiree was discovered four days after her disappearance, in the Branches forest. “The body was found in undergrowth, a very dense carpet of brambles. It is a very difficult area to access“, Hugues de Phily told France 3 Bourgogne. He immediately opened an investigation to “research the causes of death”.

► ALSO READ: Marie-Paule, gone for a run in the forest, missing for four days: the retiree found lifeless, the search is stopped