Sophie Toscan du Plantier cold case review – why now?

Published date30 June 2022
The screening of two separate documentary TV series in 2021, Murder at the Cottage by Jim Sheridan and Sophie: A Murder in West Cork by John Dower, about the murder of the 39-year-old French film producer at her west Cork holiday home helped focus the spotlight on the unsolved murder of the mother of one. The documentaries followed on from the success of West Cork, an audible podcast series on the murder by producers Sam Bungey and Jennifer Forde which helped bring the story to an international audience in 2018

Perhaps equally critical was the intervention of Ms Toscan du Plantier's son, Pierre Louis Baudey-Vignaud, particularly after the High Court refused in 2020 to extradite the chief suspect, Ian Bailey, to France following the issuing of a European Arrest Warrant for him by the French justice system. Mr Bailey has repeatedly denied any involvement in the murder.

The Irish Times understands Mr Baudey-Vignaud had pressed for a cold case review when he met senior officers in west Cork last October. He emphasised the need for the Garda to press ahead with a new investigation particularly given the High Court had refused the French request to extradite Mr Bailey to France to serve the 25-year sentence imposed on him in absentia in 2019.

The actual decision to set up the review follows a scoping exercise by a team of detectives from the Serious Crime Review team under Det Supt Des McTiernan, who spent over six months examining the file and seeing whether the investigation had the potential to be progressed. He reported back to Assistant Commissioner John O'Driscoll who recommended the full review prior to his retirement yesterday.

The Irish Times understands the review team will begin its examination next month and it will be based at Bantry...

To continue reading

Request your trial

VLEX uses login cookies to provide you with a better browsing experience. If you click on 'Accept' or continue browsing this site we consider that you accept our cookie policy. ACCEPT