Alps murders: arrested man suspected of arms trafficking
At a press conference in the French town of Annecy the prosecutor announces that a man arrested on Tuesday is believed to be involved in arms trafficking, and the murder mystery remains unsolved.
Prosecutor Eric Maillaud told journalists that officers had discovered 40 wartime guns at the home of the 48-year-old man, believed to be a former policeman from the Haute-Savoie region, who was detained yesterday. However the murder weapon was not among them.
The property in Talloires is 10km from the a remote road in Chevaline where Mr and Mrs al-Hilli, Ms al-Allaf and local cyclist Sylvain Mollier were found shot dead on 5 September 2012.
Their two daughters, Zainab and Zeena survived the killings. The older girl, Zainab, was shot and beaten. The younger girl, who was four at the time, survived by hiding behind her dead mother’s skirts for eight hours.
Mr Maillaud said police had also arrested a second man – a friend of the first, on suspicion of illegal dealing in firearms:
“The investigators also discovered yesterday evening that one of his friends was involved in this arms-trafficking business. This friend tried to escape when police arrived at his home yesterday and is in police custody.”
Bail cancelled
Investigators examining the case prompted the arrest of Mr al-Hilli’s brother, Zaid al-Hilli. His bail was cancelled last month by Surrey Police after the force decided that there was not enough evidence to charge him with a crime.
Mr al-Hilli said after Tuesday’s arrest that he was “happy” to hear of the arrest of the 48-year-old ex-police officer, but added: “Anything is better than nothing. We’ll see what happens. We can’t raise our hopes.”
E-fit
Police in France last month released an e-fit image of a motorcyclist who was spotted near the scene of the murder, leading to the arrest of the former municipal policeman.
He reportedly lived close to the murder scene in Chevaline, but the rider’s unusual helmet has not been discovered.
He was said to have been dismissed from the force last June. Some reports suggested that his mobile phone data indicates he was around the crime scene at the time of the killings. A motorbike was also discovered in the garage of the house and garden in Talloires.
Mr Eric Maillaud said:
“The weapon found was not the one from the crime, the helmets found were not those from the auto-fit portrait. However, the investigators found a large number of weapons, around 40 wartime weapons, some dating from the Second World War, also grenades, a shell, at his home and at his in-laws.
“We also know that he appears to be involved in arms trafficking. We are not sure at this stage whether it is for collectors or organised crime,