The second day of the man’s trialaccused of having killed a resident of Ehpad by suffocating her with madeleines ended around 10 p.m. this Thursday at the Assize Court of Indre-et-Loire. Proof that the witnesses were numerous and the depositions sometimes long, such as that of the medical examiner who confirmed the death by suffocation without being able to exclude or affirm the intervention of a third party in this death. Elements appeared unfavorable to the accused but do not constitute irrefutable evidence, his lawyers also raising inconsistencies in the testimonies of nursing home staff where Yvette died on May 13, 2019.
Seven women working at the Ehpad, located in Tours, at the time of Yvette’s death, testify. They are unanimous on Yvette’s difficulties in feeding herself, believe that it was dangerous to feed him while lying down. According to an ASH, on May 13, 2019, the accused arrived around 6:30 p.m. then left around 7 p.m. and within five minutes of his departure, Yvette was found dead. But was it at 7:02 p.m., 7:05 p.m., 7:10 p.m.? The memories of the staff are blurred, three years later. “The staff get the times wrong and obviously colluded“assaults Me Abed Benjador son, defense lawyer, at the end of the hearing.
Of the testimonies of the staff of the Ehpad, it is that of the nurse who observes the death which remains the most constant, from the hearings to the court of assizes. She confides to follow a therapy because certain images haunt her, such as the victim’s wide open mouth full of madeleines and the mortuary toilet. Why did you do it so quickly? “I couldn’t leave her like that (…) it was respect.“As with the others, the president asks”Are you covering for someone, a clumsiness?“Answer from the one who no longer works at the Ehpad:”Not at all.”
The life annuity, motive for a possible crime?
The accused had owned the victim’s house as a life annuity since 1995, key element of this trial because it could be a motive for a possible crime. The man cannot in fact freely resell the property during Yvette’s lifetime. He would need his authorization – or rather that of his guardianship – and also ensure that the pension is still paid. Extremely complicated operation, says a notary. The man makes about thirty calls to real estate agencies in the months preceding the death of Yvette. Agencies that hide behind professional secrecy.
Was he looking to sell the house? Or was he inquiring about goods to buy for a project”long-term“as his wife says, who indicates that they were thinking about moving for their retirement. They had the house estimated for life in 2017, at around 280,000 euros. However, in 2019, shortly before Yvette’s death, one of the searches they carried out for a property amounted to 270,000 euros. “Do you understand that it concerns me, that the amounts are similar?” asks the Advocate General. “When we talk about life, it’s unhealthy, people find it weird. But he was proud to pay this life annuity” assures the wife of the accused. “He said that he participated a little in the well-being of [la victime].”