Gardaí have announced a full review of the murder, which took place in West Cork in December of 1996.
Advances in DNA testing and new witness statements have prompted the decision. This will be the third time a review of this kind has taken place in the last 20 years.
Gardaí announce full review of the murder of Sophie Toscan du Plantier in West Cork in 1996.
Recommendations will be provided to the local investigation team.@VirginMediaNews pic.twitter.com/Vf0FNa573S
— Richard Chambers (@newschambers) June 29, 2022
According to the Independent, detectives have been examining potential new evidence over the past 12 months as well as interviewing a number of potential new witnesses – many in the wake of the two documentaries on the case screened by Sky TV and Netflix.
Ian Bailey has said he hopes a cold case review might finally clear him of the murder.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, Bailey’s solicitor Frank Buttimer said his client will fully cooperate with Gardaí in their review, “to the extent that he is required to co-operate”.
Buttimer also said he is aware of a new witness, who claims to have seen a suspect on the night of the murder.
He told Morning Ireland:
I believe it is something that has come to the attention of An Garda Síochána. Its evidential value or its evidential reliability would clearly be a matter for An Garda Síochána… It is probably one of the lines of inquiry which will be pursued.
The Independent have revealed that one of the allegations made was a claim that a person had admitted to helping to deal with bloodied clothes in the wake of Sophie’s murder. Local investigators are said to have obtained supporting evidence relating to circumstances around the claim.
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