Bi-Weekly French Crime Podcast
Podcast episode
On the 20 March 1817, a lifeless body is found on the banks of the Aveyron river near Rodez. The throat was cut, making an obvious murder. The victim is well known: it’s Bernardin Fualdès, a retired prosecutor. This affair is one of the most infamous of the 19th century and will be followed avidly all over Europe, marking the start of true crime, crime magazines, and the crime-obsessed press.
On the 28th February 1928, in a ditch along a forest road, is found the body of Gaston Truphème, jewellery dealer, wrapped in a blanket and on fire. Legendary affair with a someone that will become a legendary fictional character.
In 1986, a young girl is killed in a building basement in Paris. Some witnesses describe the suspect as having chickenpox scars on his face. He becomes “the pockmarked man” or “the Pockmarked”. The case will take 35 years to come to a conclusion in September 2021.
What made an Italian painter decorator think it was a good idea to steal the world’s most famous painting? And how did some “Half wit” slip through the Surete’s fingers?
On the Sunday 28th August 1955, a bunch of teenagers from Belloy-sur-Somme, in the North of France, discover the lifeless body of Janet Marshall in the bushes. The search for the killer will go on for months.
In 1822. in the South East of France, Marie Gerin, a field labourer’s wife, disappears without a trace. The whole village searches for her in vain. She is eventually found in pieces and suspicions turn toward the local priest.
On the 25th September 1933, Oscar Dufrenne, a theatre manager, if found dead in his office at The Palace. For those who discovered the body there is no doubt: he was assassinated.
Eugene Weidmann is a petty criminal born in Germany. In the 30s, in Paris, his activities turn to murder. He is caught in 1939 and charged with 6 murders. This case has historical significance and a celebrity connection.
In 1985, a TV game show runner, Philippe de Dieuleveult, the Anneka Rice of France, goes on a raft expedition in Africa. He never comes back and his disappearance is surrounded in mystery and intrigue.
To avoid going back to the front after an injury during WWI, Paul Grappe becomes a deserter To avoid being caught by the authorities, instead fo disappearing like most deserters, he has a new idea: he’ll live as a woman, hiding in plain sight. The plan will work, but will eventually cost him his life.
