An 82-year-old man and 60-year-old woman have been accused of abducting and subjecting a woman to torture for a period of five years.
The 45-year-old victim was reportedly held against her will in Saint-Molf, located in France’s Brittany peninsula, by her roommate and the roommate’s partner. French media sources indicated that the victim was described as “psychologically vulnerable” and was taken to a hospital due to hypothermia.
According to Nantes prosecutor Antoine Leroy, the victim was coerced to reside in either the garden or a garage connected to the residence where the two suspects lived.
The woman managed to escape when the man was distracted watching TV, making a dash for freedom from the enclosure where she was confined. She sought help by knocking on a neighbor’s window, scantily clad, and disclosed that she had been held captive for five years.
The victim stated that she initially shared an apartment with another woman in the house until the arrival of the man. Subsequently, she was instructed to vacate the house and live outdoors, whether in a tent in the garden or in the attached garage. A search of the property substantiated her claims.
The alleged victim frequently found herself locked in the garage, forced to sleep in precarious conditions on a deckchair, according to the prosecutor.
The victim endured deplorable living conditions, resorting to using a potty or plastic bags for personal hygiene, consuming porridge mixed with dish soap, and being prohibited from leaving the premises.
The prosecutor noted that the victim disappeared from public view following her divorce in April 2022, with her bank accounts showing minimal activity except for substantial transactions to the couple, as reported by LeParisien.
The man and woman were apprehended at the conclusion of the previous week and purportedly confessed to the core allegations, albeit attempting to minimize their severity.
Both individuals have been formally charged with kidnapping involving torture or acts of cruelty, carrying a potential sentence of life imprisonment. Additionally, they face charges of exploiting a person’s vulnerable mental or physical state and taking advantage of a vulnerable individual.
While the man was placed under judicial supervision, the woman was remanded in custody.