Ian Bailey, convicted in France for the murder of Sophie Toscan du Plantier, is dead

Europe 1 with AFP / Photo credit: PETER MUHLY / AFP 6:51 p.m., January 21, 2024

Ian Bailey, a British journalist sentenced in France to 25 years in prison for the murder of Sophie Toscan du Plantier in 1996, has died, his lawyer announced on Sunday, cited by Irish media.

Convicted on May 31, 2019 in his absence by the Paris Assize Court for the murder of the 39-year-old French woman, Ian Bailey, who had always proclaimed his innocence, lived in Ireland, a country which had refused to extradite him.

Ian Bailey, 66, died suddenly on Sunday afternoon in Bantry (southern Ireland), RTE television reported, adding that his death was confirmed by his lawyer Frank Buttimer.

According to the

, Ian Bailey suffered two heart attacks last year.

The body of Sophie Toscan du Plantier, wife of French film producer Daniel Toscan du Plantier (died in 2003), was discovered on the morning of December 23, 1996 by a neighbor, below her isolated house in Schull, on the south coast. -west of Ireland.

A documentary released on Netflix in 2021 

Very quickly suspected by the Irish police, Ian Bailey was twice placed in police custody in 1997 and 1998, but never prosecuted in Ireland, due to lack of sufficient evidence, in an investigation marred by numerous difficulties.

Surprised at home, Sophie Toscan du Plantier fled to the moors and struggled against her attacker.

His skull had been smashed by a flat stone and a cinder block.

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At the end of the trial in Paris, French justice considered that there was "sufficient evidence" to convict Ian Bailey despite the absence of scientific evidence linking him to the crime.

But Ireland has always refused to authorize his extradition to France, despite several requests from the French authorities.

A documentary released in 2021 on the Netflix streaming platform once again made people talk about this affair.