Jacquy Haddouche

Jacquy Haddouche (19 February 1964 – 23 October 2010) was a French serial killer. He was convicted of three murders committed between 1992 and 2002 and sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 22 years.

Biography

Youth Haddouche's parents are Algerian. His mother's name is Djouber Azzouz and his father's name is Ahmed Haddouche, a soldier in the French army during the Algerian War; also known as a harki. In 1962, Ahmed was evacuated with his family to France. In Beauvais, in the Oise department, he found a job as a skilled worker at the Lockheed factory. He became an alcoholic and very violent, and was fired from his job.

In 1979, at the age of 15, the juvenile court judge placed him in a supervised education centre in Méru. He regularly escaped to return to the family home. It was there that he witnessed a traumatic scene. Unable to bear the fact that his wife had filed for divorce and was leaving him, Ahmed Haddouche committed suicide by shooting himself in the head with a rifle in front of Jacquy, who was standing close by. He was splattered with blood and his father's body fell on top of him. Traumatised, he dropped out of school and sank into delinquency and drug addiction.

First series of crimes and incarcerations In 1980, at the age of 16, Haddouche committed gang rape with a legionnaire ten years his senior. When he was arrested, Haddouche showed no remorse or guilt. He was charged with gang rape and placed in pre-trial detention. On 15 April 1981, the Beauvais Juvenile Court sentenced him to five years' imprisonment. He was released in 1984 after serving four years.

In 1984, Haddouche committed several armed and unarmed robberies. After yet another robbery, several reports led to his identification. Aged 20, Haddouche was arrested and charged with these offences, then placed in pre-trial detention. His trial took place in 1986 before the Assize Court for armed robbery and robbery with violence. Although he faced up to 20 years in prison, he benefited from mitigating circumstances and was sentenced to eight years' imprisonment. Incarcerated at the Liancourt Penitentiary, Haddouche married in 1988 at his mother's instigation.

Release and second series of crimes Haddouche was released in 1990 after six years in prison and moved in with his wife. Their marriage lasted another eight months before ending in divorce. Haddouche proved to be a smooth talker. He knew how to gain the trust of the people he met in order to deceive them. He easily fell in love with his female conquests, but had a violent temper towards his partners.

On 13 December 1993, Haddouche was taken into custody. He denied the allegations and stated that he had been in the Paris region at the home of Cloé, his partner of 20 years. Cloé arrived at the police station at just the right moment and confirmed his alibi. When the police asked her for further details, she refused to answer their questions and left the police station. In his police cell, Haddouche attempt suicide by slitting his wrists with his lighter and was hospitalised. With the police custody period expired and the police lacking sufficient evidence to prove Haddouche's guilt, the court dropped the charges against him and the case was closed. The case was dismissed on 1 September 1994.

Imprisonment for robbery with violence In 1995, Haddouche, aged 31, and Cloé, aged 22, were taken into custody for poisoning Ludovic. Cloé admitted to having played a role in poisoning and robbing the victim, but claimed to have been influenced by Haddouche. Haddouche, for his part, remained impassive and denied poisoning his victim. During an identification parade, Ludovic J. recognised Haddouche behind a two-way mirror. At the end of his police custody, Haddouche was charged with attempted murder and robbery, then placed in pre-trial detention. Cloé, meanwhile, was charged with complicity in robbery with violence and released.

On 20 June, at around 7 p.m., Haddouche entered the SONACOTRA hostel on Rue d'Anjou in the Argentine neighbourhood of Beauvais. At around 8 p.m., he forced open the door to the studio apartment of Léo Capon, a 73-year-old pensioner. Haddouche struck and slit the old lady's throat. He searched the apartment and stole items of little value. Worried, Capon's daughter Danièle went to her mother's house. She was surprised to find that the front door was unlocked. Everything had been ransacked, and items were scattered everywhere. There were numerous bloodstains on the floor and rubbish bags filled with various items near the front door. Capon's body is lying on her back in the bathroom, her face covered with pieces of cardboard. On the building's CCTV footage, a balding man with a springy gait is seen carrying full bags in each hand and wearing a cap that hides his face. The poor quality of the images makes it impossible to identify him. Male DNA is discovered on various objects in Léo's home. This DNA is not listed in the FNAEG. Capon is disfigured by the blows she received. Forensic scientists determine that she died from suffocation caused by her own blood.

On 2 December, Haddouche was taken into custody for the murder of Capon. He denied committing the crime, but his denials were not taken seriously. Personal belongings and plates belonging to the murdered elderly woman were found at Haddouche's home. In addition, DNA found at the crime scene matched his. The following evening, Haddouche was charged with Capon's murder and taken back to Osny-Pontoise Prison. He denied the charges. Items he had stolen from her home were found by police when they searched his flat. Haddouche accused his flatmate of being the perpetrator.

On 1 June 2003, Haddouche was taken into custody at the Saint-Étienne gendarmerie. He admitted to having been in the area in mid-July 2002 to visit family members. During the police lineup, behind a beam splitter, Florent formally identified Haddouche. He eventually admitted to having met Sylvain Rome at the bar, but claimed never to have been to his home. He was charged with murder and transferred to Lyon-Corbas Prison.

With the help of the circular, a connection is made with the attempted rape of Liliane D., committed in Boulogne-sur-Mer in July 2002. The victim formally identifies Haddouche during a line-up. When questioned about the 1995 rape, Haddouche admitted to having met Francine C. at the Charlie Brown bar, but denied having gone to her home. He claimed that the rape complaint against him was an act of revenge on her part because he had not delivered the drugs she had ordered from him for 30,000 francs. Haddouche was charged with the repeat rape of Francine C. and the attempted repeat rape of Liliane D., then returned to Lyon-Corbas Prison.

In view of the two murders and the attempted rape, committed in less than a month, the investigators doubted that Haddouche had started killing in 2002 and decided to look into his past. In 2003, they dug up his police records and came across the 1992 death of Gilles Canette in 1992, in which he had been heard as a witness and suspect. When questioned again about the case, Cloé admitted to the investigating judge that she had lied: she did not know Haddouche in November 1992 and only met him in September 1993, when she started school in Beauvais.

In 2004, Haddouche was once again taken into custody for the murder of Canette. As in 1993, he denied responsibility for her death and gave the same alibi, ignoring Cloé's retractions. When confronted with his inconsistencies, Haddouche claimed that Cloé was lying to get revenge for having involved him in the poisoning of Ludovic J. in 1994. More than 11 years after the events, Haddouche was charged with Canette's murder and returned to Lyon-Corbas Prison.

First instance trial for the Beauvais crimes On 23 April 2008, Haddouche's trial began at the Assize Court of Oise in Beauvais for the murder of Gilles Canette in 1992, the rape of Francine in 1995, the murder of Léo Capon in 2002, and the attempted rape of Liliane in the same year. Antoine Vaast was the lawyer for Gilles Canette's family. Philippe Tabart was the lawyer for Léo Capon's family. Virginie Bella-Gamba was Francine's lawyer.

When he arrives in the dock, Haddouche continues to deny committing the crimes and claims to be the victim of a conspiracy. Faced with the presence of his DNA at the scene of Léo Capon's murder, he claims that the police planted it there to get him wrongfully convicted. When Liliane D. arrives in the dock, she once again identifies Haddouche as her attacker. He does not admit to the attempted rape and accuses the victim of wanting to have him wrongfully convicted. Regarding the murder of Canette, Cloé testifies about her year-long relationship with Haddouche and claims to have been used to protect him from his crimes. She recounts how she lied in 1993 to protect the man she considered a protective figure. She also recounts how she was used to participate in the poisoning of Ludovic J. in 1994, for which she was convicted along with Haddouche and decided to cut ties with him.

On 7 May, Haddouche was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 22 years, accompanied by 20 years of socio-judicial supervision and compulsory treatment. He appealed against this decision.

Appeal trial concerning the Beauvais crimes On 9 March 2009, Haddouche's appeal trial began at the Assize Court of the Somme in Amiens.

When he arrived in court, Haddouche admitted to the murder of Léo Capon and the attempted rape of Liliane D., which he had always denied until then. He admitted to drinking a lot of alcohol on the days of the crimes and claimed that he had been unable to control himself. This argument left the court feeling uneasy, frightened by his ability to kill without reason. Although he admitted to these two crimes, Haddouche still vehemently denied the murder of Gilles Canette in 1992 and the rape of Francine C. in 1995.

On 20 March, Haddouche was again sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 22 years. He appealed to the Court of Cassation, but his appeal was rejected.

Death On 23 October 2010, Haddouche died of a cerebral haemorrhage at Fresnes Prison in Val-de-Marne, at the age of 46. He had spent 25 years of his life in detention.

Even today, there is still doubt about the exact number of his victims. Some people remain convinced that Haddouche committed other crimes between 1990 and 1995, during his period of freedom.

List of known victims

TV documentary "Jacquy Haddouche, At the chance of crime" 2 May 2010 in Get the accused presented by Christophe Hondelatte on France 2.

Radio show

"Jacquy Haddouche" 21 March 2018 in Hondelatte tells presented by Christophe Hondelatte on Europe 1.