France: Rezé in shock after the suicide of its mayor
Audio 01:16
The town center of the commune of Rezé, near Nantes, with the town hall (on the left).
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1 min
The mayor of Rezé, near Nantes (west), killed himself on Friday February 11 inside the town hall.
A death that could be linked to malicious emails he had received.
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A large portrait of Hervé Neau is displayed in front of the Rezé town hall.
Wreaths of flowers and candles were placed there, in memory of the mayor found hanged yesterday inside the building.
Dozens of people come to meditate, torn between shock and emotion.
Marie-Chantal cannot hold back her tears.
She does not understand this story of malicious letters against the mayor.
“
Why go after the mayor?
I was overwhelmed when I found
out,” she confided to our special correspondent,
Matthieu Bonhoure
.
For the Nantes prosecutor's office, suicide is beyond doubt.
"
He left letters for his relatives and instructions for the funeral
," he told Agence France-Presse.
According to prosecutor Renaud Gaudeul, the mayor's chief of staff had contacted the prosecution on Tuesday to report that the mayor and several members of his entourage had recently received malicious letters related mainly to his private life and which could be considered defamatory. .
Hervé Neau had nevertheless given up filing a complaint.
In front of the town hall of Rezé, the only noise that breaks the silence of the people gathered is that of the church bell.
“
We are going to find these bastards,
promises Olivier, who is demanding a strong response from justice.
From what I understand, there is a crow.
These kind of people who contributed to his death, for me, they are assassins.
»
The mayor was a teacher before joining local politics.
Mary knew him well.
His four children had gone to his school.
She doesn't understand either.
“
To get there, you really have to be at your wit's end.
»
Strong emotion in the assembly gathered Friday evening to pay tribute to the mayor of #Rezé, Hervé Neau, who died this morning.
The inhabitants gathered and observed a minute of silence before applauding the man warmly and for a long time.
👉 https://t.co/D7gouPUL3D pic.twitter.com/rczkR41xTb
– City of Rezé (@VilleReze) February 11, 2022
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