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foreign [Music] deal with serious and often distressing incidents if you feel at any time you
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need support please contact your local crisis center for suggested phone numbers for confidential support please
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see the show notes for this episode on your app or on our website today's episode involves crimes against
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children and won't be suitable for all listeners [Music] the small sleepy Village of La panch
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serve alone lies in northeastern France towards the German border in 1980 it was home to less than 1 000
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inhabitants many of whom came from families that lived in the area for Generations
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the queen to rural Hammer was typical of the region orange tiled houses and Evergreen
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forests had dotted the grassy hillsides with the vallone river snaking through the valley
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the main road offered a little besides a school news agency and a small selection
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of cafes and bakeries a majority of the townsfolk were employed at one of the local factories
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suffice to say not much happened in LA panch it was an ordinary Village filled with
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ordinary working-class people [Music] in the early 1980s phone lines were installed in the area for the first time
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in July 1981 newlyweds Jean-Marie and Christine vilmaan took advantage of this development and had a line installed to
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their newly built home it had been an exciting time for the young couple who were both aged in their
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early 20s Christine had recently given birth to their first child her son named Gregory
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Jean-Marie secured a coveted position as four men in a car upholstery factory bringing a new level of financial
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stability to the young family they'd purchased a plot of land on the outskirts of LA panch and to build a
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comfortable yet modest Chalet style home with plans to extend as their family grew
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the future looked bright [Music] one night shortly after they'd had their new phone installed it rang
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Christine answered all she could hear on the other line was heavy breathing then the line went dead
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it happened again and again one silent Anonymous call after the next placed at random times for several days
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[Music] one night Jean-Marie picked up this time he could hear a record playing it was the song we are thirsty by
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Belgian singer Gran Jojo [Music] a giggling female voice sang along out of time to the upbeat song which told
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the story of a member of the foreign Legions quest to find a beer still the caller said nothing
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[Music] a few nights later the phone rang again another song played but still no
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conversation the hang up calls continued for several months more heavy breathing and long silences
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then in November the caller finally spoke [Music] [Music] [Music] jean-marie's parents Albert and Monique
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vilmann had been harassed by the same mysterious caller for months the couple lived in the neighboring Village of all
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monsay located 11 kilometers east of LA panch they'd raised at their six children
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there while taking turns working shifts at the local textile Factory most of their children had married and
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fled the nest except for their youngest son who was only 12 years old the others all still lived nearby and
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would get together on Sundays to catch up over a meal the calls to Albert and Monique varied
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in length and content sometimes the caller would say nothing other times they'd rant for up to half
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an hour often the calls were studded with sneeze vile language and threats a majority of the time the caller was a
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man with a horse muffled Voice who was obviously trying to disguise his natural speech
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but the coals were occasionally made by a woman or possibly a man speaking in a high-pitched voice
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the caller eventually earned themselves the nickname of the crow after the 1943 French film of the same name
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in the movie A mysterious Rider terrorizes a small town with Anonymous letters that expose everyone's dark
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secrets although the identity of the vilman's crow remained unknown one thing was
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certain this wasn't some random stranger the crow had intimate knowledge of the vilmaan family that only an Insider
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could be privy to they knew where each family member lived who they were married to where they
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worked and how they spent their days they knew whenever something new happened within the family and of the
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changing Dynamics and conflicts Within whoever the crow was they were watching the villain family closely
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[Music] their motivation wasn't clear but there were a couple of elements they were
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particularly fixated on Albert and Monique's eldest child Jackie had been born out of wedlock
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he wasn't Albert's biological child at all but the result of a brief fling minnecad just before their marriage
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Albert had to married Monique to save her the shame and stigma of being an unwed mother
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regardless Albert never accepted Jackie as his son and he was mostly raised by his maternal grandparents
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it had been a sore spot within the family especially for Jackie who only learned to the truth about his
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background at the age of 17. [Music] the crow continually honed in on this referring to quote the bastard and
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insinuating there could be more bastard children among them the crow appeared sympathetic towards
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Jackie and often came to his defense Michelle vilmann was the second oldest son of the clan
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he was illiterate poorly spoken and had low self-esteem the crow complained that Michelle was
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treated badly in contrast the crow had a particular disdain for Jean-Marie his recent promotion to Foreman was a
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sore spot for some family members who envied that Jean-Marie had managed to rise above their working-class ranks
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the crow spitefully referred to Jean-Marie as boss their dislike for Jean-Marie was
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borderline obsessive the crow knew how proud Albert and Monique were of their middle son and he
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continuously encouraged them to cut all tires with the Jean-Marie and his family
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the crow seemed to determined to drive a wedge between members of the vilmaan family and to turn them against one
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another and it worked conflicts began flaring up among the siblings parents and extended relatives
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as allegations arose as to who among them was behind the crow the extended vilmaan Clan had a no
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shortage of dark family secrets and the crow wasn't afraid to use this information against them
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Albert's father had hanged himself when Albert was only 12 years old the crow constantly encouraged Albert to
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do the same [Music] Christine vilmann was home alone with baby Gregory when the phone rang on
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November 22 1981. Jean-Marie was working the night shift it was the first time Christine heard
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the hoarse voice of the crow for herself the mystery caller began unleashing a barrage of insults
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Christine quickly hung up this enraged The Crow he immediately called back and the
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insults worsened he threatened violence making it clear he knew exactly where Christine lived and what her movements
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were like Christine asked the caller what she ever did to deserve this harassment
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the crow responded it's not you it's your old man later that night Christine heard a
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rattling noise at her front door she went to investigate only to discover that a latch on the door had been broken
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and a window pane had been smashed Christine bundled Gregory up and rushed to her next-door neighbor's house
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after that she became consumed by fear Jean-Marie bought a 22 caliber rifle for himself and a pistol for Christine
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he reinforced all of the windows of their home with shutters Christine refused to stay alone in the
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house at night whenever Jean-Marie worked nights she took Gregory to stay at her mother's
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meanwhile the calls continued at Albert and Monique's house the crow told them I broke down the boss's door his wife
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was scared the villains weren't the type of people to involve law enforcement like many others in the region they were
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old school and somewhat stubborn they believed that conflicts should be sorted out between those involved
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instead Albert and Monique started recording the time date and content of each phone call in a notebook
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afraid they too would be physically targeted Albert installed car mirrors throughout their property
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the crow immediately told Albert that he knew about the mirrors had a family member told them or had the
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crows seen it for themselves the surveillance was constant one July day in 1982 Monique and Albert
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went for a stroll with their son Gilbert and his wife upon their return home the phone rang
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it was the all too familiar voice of The Crow did you have a nice walk he asked in September 1982 Gilbert was at work
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when a woman called to let him know that his mother had been in a terrible accident
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Gilbert rushed to his parents house only to find that Monique was completely unharmed and oblivious to any such call
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there had been no accident as soon as Gilbert left Albert and Monique's phone rang
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it was the crow laughing about how stupid and gullible Gilbert had been on Tuesday November 30 1982 the phone
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rang incessantly at Albert and Monique's house the crow racked up a grand total of 27
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calls the couple had finally reached their limit they reported the caller to the local
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police and an investigation was launched determining the identity of the crow was
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no easy feat phone records at the time noted the amount of calls made from a landline but
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didn't specify which local numbers had been dialed there was heightened activity on the
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phone accounts of several members of the vilmaan family during peak times when the crow was active
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this in and of itself wasn't necessarily suspicious each call from the crow provoked other
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calls within the family making it an ongoing chain reaction despite the different Dynamics within
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the family no one stood out as a clear suspect the crow had insinuated the identity of
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various individuals but this was likely an intentional way to deflect from the truth
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given that the crow was sympathetic towards Jackie there were suspicions that Jackie himself was behind the cause
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Jackie's wife Liliane had an incredibly strange relationship with the villains so it made sense that she could have
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been the female accomplice she had also been at Albert's home when he installed the mirrors
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liliane's parents disliked the wilmans and some wondered whether Liliane was feeding them information
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could a Liliane be the Mastermind behind the crow and her father the one executing the calls
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tensions among the family escalated Sunday get-togethers became hostile and unpleasant
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Albert and Jean-Marie were convinced that Jackie was the crow when confronted with this accusation
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Jackie strongly denied it he was so offended that he stopped seeing his family altogether
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the police thought the crow could possibly be identified through a process of elimination
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the next time the crow rang the recipient was advised to call the person they suspected to be responsible
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were they standing by the phone could they notice any similarities in The Voice on Monday December 13 1982 the crow
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called Albert and Monique to announce ongoing to LA panch to hurt Christine the next morning Jean-Marie discovered
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that the tires on his car had been slashed when Albert found out his paranoia grew
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he grabbed his rifle and began scouring his property the crow called shortly after laughing
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at Albert for his actions which he seemed to have observed the Relentless calls continued into 1983
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with the crow targeting Albert and Monique a total of 17 times in one day the female crow began to appear more and
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more frequently she could often be heard in the background of the calls and sometimes
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made the calls herself on one occasion she called a funeral home and declared that Albert villaman
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was dead staff showed up at the villman's home prepared to collect a corpse [Music]
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by this point all four of the adult villain Sons Jackie Michelle Jean-Marie and Gilbert had received calls from The
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Crow as had their wives others had witnessed these calls take place Michelle was the only one who had been
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alone every time he was contacted by The Crow he claimed the crow had threatened
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I know what time you leave for work when your wife comes home and when your children are alone
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when Monique answered the calls the crow mostly remained silent in early 1983 she began encouraging him
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to talk hoping to diminish some of his power that's when the death threat started
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referring to Jean-Marie the crow told Monique I'm going to kill him I already scared
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his wife I will do it again soon Christine often unplugged her phone to avoid the harassment
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the crow seemed to be aware of this one night he called Monique and said I watch her I know she is alone at home
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she can unplug her phone but maybe I'll come this evening Monique tried not to act perturbed she
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insinuated they discovered the Crow's identity eventually he responded you [ __ ] you will never get me
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besides I can't be touched one day the female crow called Christine at work pretending that her husband had
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been in an accident on another occasion she called the fire department claiming that Albert villmann
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had hanged himself by Friday March 4 1983 the crow had been harassing the vilmaan family for over a
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year and a half that day Jean-Marie noticed an envelope tucked into the window shutters on his
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house it was addressed to him inside was a single-page note written in Block capital letters
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I will kill the vilmaan family three weeks went by before the crow made contact again
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this time Jean-Marie managed to record the call as the crow made cryptic Revelations about there being quote
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another bastard in the family the clearer of the two voices belongs to Jean-Marie villmann the softer distorted
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voice is the crow d Ed [Music] a few weeks later a woman called a genre's work asking to speak with him
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by the time Jean-Marie answered the crow was on the line a female's voice audible
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in the background although the crow often talked to others about his hatred for Jean-Marie he
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rarely spoke to Jean-Marie himself Jean-Marie tried to act cool and casual if he didn't react maybe he could
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undermine the harasser they spoke on the phone for 40 minutes the crow told Jean-Marie that his
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brother Jackie wasn't the only illegitimate child amongst the siblings he claimed that Monique was Keeping a
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Secret from the whole family she had allegedly continued a relationship with the Jackie's father
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after she married Albert and he'd impregnated her for a second time Jean-Marie tried to shrug things off
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asking for more information as proof his composure seemed to aggravate The Crow the crow threatened to burn down
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jean-marie's house he responded go ahead I'll just build another one the crow then threatened to rape
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Christine Jean-Marie continued to remain calm saying I don't care the crow described Jean-Marie and
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Christine's house making it clear he knew exactly what the interior looked like and what kind of furniture they had
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I'll go after your kid he said and don't leave him lying around I'm watching him with binoculars
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if I find him outside I'll take him away Jean-Marie could no longer maintain his
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composure his son Gregory was his life he snapped back you bastard if you touch my kid you're a
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dead man the police had agreed to set up wiretaps on Albert and Monique's telephone
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Monique made the mistake of telling some family members about this the crow found out and the call stopped
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on Wednesday April 27 1983 an envelope arrived in Albert and Monique's letterbox
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written in the same block letters as the one sent to their son the letter red if you want me to stop let me offer you
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a solution don't visit the boss anymore cut him off entirely if you don't I will execute the
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threats I made to the boss and his little family and Jackie and his family have been
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through enough it's the boss's turn to be considered a bastard he will console himself with his money
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you choose life or death three weeks later Albert was at work when one of his colleagues told him
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there was a woman on the phone asking to speak with him Albert picked up the receiver
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the voice of the male Crow said you will hang yourself the next day another letter arrived at
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Albert and benek's home this one was much longer than the others and written in scrolling cursive
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I see nothing has changed it began the boss is still coming it went on to defend Jackie before
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addressing Albert directly you old man you look very ill to me I'm quitting and you'll never know who
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pissed you off for two years you may not hang yourself but I don't care because my revenge has been made
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I hate you so much that I will spit on your grave the day you die this is my last letter and you will hear
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no more from me you will wonder who I was but you will never find out goodbye my dear idiots
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over a year went by with no further word from the mysterious Crow life returned to normal
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Christine villmann worked as a seamstress at a local clothing Factory Tuesday October 16 1984 was a typical
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work day for the 24 year old she knocked off at around 4 53 pm and to jumped into her car a black Renault 5.
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four-year-old Gregory was just around the corner at his nanny's house Christine picked him up but she couldn't
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stay to chat as she had a load of clothes that needed ironing the mother and son arrived home just
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after five o'clock Gregory wanted to play outside there was a pile of gravel in the
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driveway that he liked to use as a race track for his toy cars although it was a relatively warm autumn
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day Gregory was recovering from a cold so Christine made him put on a Woolen hat first
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she then went to a room towards the back of their house where the shutters were drawn
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she turned to the radio up and got stuck into the ironing by the time Christine finished it was
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about 5 30. she went outside to tell Gregory it was time to come indoors his toy cars sat on the gravel pile but
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Gregory himself was nowhere to be seen Christine called out her son's name there was no response
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she started searching around to the yard but couldn't find Gregory anywhere she went back inside in case Gregory was
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hiding from her but the house was empty she approached one of her neighbors who was sweeping outside
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he hadn't seen Gregory either nor had his wife who was sewing inside another neighbor was tending to their
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cows in the nearby pasture but they hadn't noticed the young boy Panic washed over Christine
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she got into her Renault and sped back to her nanny's house on the off chance Gregory had wandered back there
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he hadn't Christine drove to the home of one of Gregory's friends in case he'd gone
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there to play but Gregory wasn't anywhere to be seen meanwhile at 5 32 PM the phone rang at
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the house of jean-marie's brother Michelle he lived next door to their parents in
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ormondsay and was watching TV at the time Michelle immediately recognized the horse voice on the other line
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this time it sounded muffled as though the caller had covered the mouthpiece with a handkerchief
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I'm calling you because there is no answer next door the crow said I took revenge on the boss and kidnapped
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his son I strangled him and threw him in the vallone his mother is looking for him but she
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won't find him my revenge is done case File will be back shortly thank you for supporting us by listening to this
00:28:14
episode's sponsors thank you for listening to this episode's ads by supporting our sponsors
00:28:23
you support casefile to continue to deliver quality content thank you Monique and Albert villan were Tracked
00:28:40
Down nearby and informed of the call from The Crow Monique was horrified the crow had made many threats over the
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years but this one was unusually specific Monique immediately called her daughter-in-law Christine to warn her
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there was no answer Christine was still outside desperately searching for Gregory
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instead Monique called her son Jean-Marie at work followed by the local police Jean-Marie raced home went inside and
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grabbed his gun for a long time he'd been convinced that lilian's parents Roger and Paulette
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jacquel were behind the crow it made sense given the Crow's peculiar concern for Jackie
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Jean-Marie rushed over to the jacquel's home certain he would find his son there
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when he arrived he saw two vehicles which he thought were police cars parked outside
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he backed away a search party quickly gathered citizens and police scoured the woods
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surrounding LA panch on the lookout for the four-year-old with long curly brown hair
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he was dressed in a blue jacket dark green trousers and a blue Woolen cap the hours ticked By the Light giving way
00:30:09
to night still there was no sign of Gregory six kilometers Downstream from La panch
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was the small village of dosel firefighters there searched the vallone river at 9 15 PM they came to a small band
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just 10 meters past a small Footbridge they noticed something bobbing in the water against a weir
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they got closer it was Gregory villemon a firefighter jumped in the river to retrieve Gregory's lifeless body
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the young boy was obviously deceased he was fully clothed his wrists and ankles bound together with thin pieces
00:31:00
of rope his Woolen hat had been pulled over his face and was Loosely secured around his
00:31:06
neck with the same type of robe the firefighters removed Gregory's hat there were no signs of violence
00:31:16
on the contrary they were struck by how Serene and unblemished he looked as though he was in a peaceful sleep
00:31:24
[Music] Gregory hadn't been strangled like the crow said in fact the forensic pathologist who
00:31:32
conducted his autopsy couldn't find any signs that a struggle had taken place at
00:31:36
all there were no bruises on Gregory's body nor had the rope left any marks on his
00:31:43
skin his clothes were clean and there was no evidence of sexual assault a small amount of water found in
00:31:52
Gregory's distended lungs and foam in the corners of his mouth indicated his cause of death to be drowning
00:32:00
due to the cold temperature of the water forensic Pathologists concluded the young boy would have stopped breathing
00:32:06
within moments of being submerged there were a multitude of locations between LA panch and docel where the
00:32:18
killer could have dumped Gregory's body into the river the day after Gregory was killed tire
00:32:24
tracks and the imprints of a woman's shoe had been found in the riverbank at a clearing in the village of decimon
00:32:31
this was 2.3 kilometers from the vilmaan's home and a several kilometers Upstream from docel
00:32:40
police obtained a mannequin with similar proportions to the four-year-old they visited the location in decimon and
00:32:48
threw it into the water by the time the mannequin reached a docile it had passed through various
00:32:54
bends branches rocks and other obstacles given that Gregory's clothing hadn't been torn and his body showed no
00:33:03
scratches or bruises it was deemed impossible that he'd travel to that far Downstream
00:33:11
the mannequin was thrown from various other locations including behind a fire station right near the center of dosel
00:33:19
the station was mere meters from the location where Gregory had been found police concluded that this was most
00:33:27
likely the place from which his small body had been thrown Gregory's parents Jean-Marie and
00:33:37
Christine vilmaan were inconsolable little Gregory had been the light of their lives
00:33:43
he was a delightful intelligent child full of happiness and energy he loved to dance especially to the
00:33:50
music of Michael Jackson cheeky with a contagious laugh Gregory got a great thrill out of playing pranks
00:33:58
on his parents but for all his Mischief he was equally tender and affectionate he was particularly fond of his stuffed
00:34:08
monkey Kiki who he took with him everywhere Gregory loved hugs and kisses and would
00:34:15
sneak into his parents bed on weekends to enjoy the extra long cuddles complicating the villman's crippling
00:34:25
grief was the unbelievable reality that someone within their own family could do
00:34:29
something so cruel who could hate them enough to take the life of their only child
00:34:37
Jean-Marie cast suspicion on his brother's in-laws Roger and Paula jacquel and the couple were taken into
00:34:45
custody they both had airtight Alibis and were promptly ruled out as Jean-Marie and Christine struggled to
00:34:55
comprehend what was happening an envelope arrived in their mailbox the day after Gregory's death
00:35:03
it was addressed to Jean-Marie using swirling cursive inside was a short Anonymous letter
00:35:12
it read I hope that you die of grief boss your money can't give you back your son
00:35:21
here's my revenge you bastard the envelope was postmarked 5 15 pm on Tuesday October 16. the day Gregory was
00:35:33
killed it had been sent from the LA panch post office which was 1.3 kilometers north of
00:35:40
the vilmaan's home postal workers said the last mail collection occurred around 5 20 pm
00:35:48
but the mailbox could have been emptied anytime between 1 55 and 5 20 PM that day
00:35:57
given that Gregory was abducted sometime between 505 and 5 30 PM this presented a
00:36:04
few possibilities 1. the killer had sent the letter before speeding to the vilmaan's house to
00:36:11
snatch Gregory 2. the killer already had Gregory with them when they posted the letter
00:36:20
or three they hadn't acted alone it seemed unlikely that the killer would have sent the letter prior to the
00:36:30
kidnapping had they done so they would have had to have full confidence that the abduction
00:36:35
was going ahead how could they be sure Gregory would be playing outside what if the opportunity to abduct him
00:36:44
never arose there were simply too many variables but if they were working with an
00:36:52
accomplice this meant someone else could have taken care of the mail drop once the boy was taken
00:37:02
the task of overseeing the investigation was handed to local magistrate 33 year old judge Jean-Michel Lambert
00:37:12
Gregory's murder was expected to be an open and shut case all police had to do was identify the
00:37:18
crow and they'd have the Killer they knew the caller came from within the vilmaan family which narrowed down
00:37:26
the suspect list significantly but it wasn't as simple as it seemed Gregory's grandmother moniquevilleman
00:37:37
was one of 13 siblings alone all up the extended family consisted of over 140 individuals and previous
00:37:46
investigations to identify the caller had proved fruitless during the Crow's peak time of activity
00:37:54
several recipients had managed to record the calls but the recordings weren't of
00:37:59
particularly high quality the crow had made obvious attempts to disguise their voice speaking in a horse
00:38:07
raspy tone given the muffled sound it was likely they'd covered the receiver with a
00:38:14
handkerchief or piece of fabric as it stood nobody recognized The caller's Voice
00:38:24
began questioning relatives of the vilmaan family and a verifying alibis they gathered handwriting samples to
00:38:32
compare against the first and final letters sent to Jean-Marie one was in Block capitals the other in cursive
00:38:40
script individuals were required to write the message from the last letter with both
00:38:47
their left and right hands the samples were then sent to a handwriting expert for analysis
00:38:54
with so many relatives it was a slow moving process although Jean-Marie and Christine lived
00:39:05
in a quiet spot on the outskirts of La panch it wasn't isolated several residents lived nearby and had
00:39:12
been home or in the area at the time Gregory was abducted it had still been broad at daylight
00:39:21
one local man had been walking his dog near the villman's property but he hadn't seen any cars drive by or noticed
00:39:28
anything of Interest nor had any of the vilmaan's neighbors they were aware of the ongoing
00:39:36
harassment from The Crow had they witnessed any suspicious activity near the property they said
00:39:41
they would have reported it a man who lived further down the road recalled hearing a car drive up the hill
00:39:49
at around 505 PM but he never heard it drive back down again he never saw it so couldn't vouch for
00:39:57
the color or model in the days leading up to the crime several townsfolk had noticed an
00:40:04
unfamiliar green car circulating The Village at around 2PM on the day Gregory was
00:40:11
taken one man recalled seeing a beige colored van parked near the woods overlooking the vilmaan's home
00:40:19
a man and woman were inside he didn't get a good look at them but they appeared to have something hanging
00:40:27
around to their necks possibly binoculars or a camera this witness saw the same car driving
00:40:34
towards docel the village where Gregory's body was found at 4 45 pm no other cars were seen driving between
00:40:43
LA panch and docile during this key time frame hundreds of houses and several busy
00:40:52
factories overlooked at the vallone river between the two villages dozens of people had spent time near the
00:40:58
water on the night Gregory died yet no one had witnessed anything out of the ordinary
00:41:06
one woman had crossed the Footbridge in docel at around 5 30. she recorded looking into the river and noticing what
00:41:14
she thought was a garbage bag floating in the water in hindsight she wondered whether it
00:41:20
could have been Gregory's body the forensic pathologist attained this unlikely although the exact time of death
00:41:30
couldn't be confirmed they believed Gregory had likely died sometime around 6 pm
00:41:38
it was possible he might not have been thrown into the river until hours after he was killed
00:41:46
one local had witnessed a middle-aged man hanging around to the lepange post office around 5pm on October 15 and 16.
00:41:55
he had brown curly hair a strong build and wore glasses on October 22 six days after Gregory's
00:42:04
death the police released a composite sketch of this suspect asking anyone who recognized the man to come forward
00:42:13
a local man voluntarily presented himself to police he identified himself as the one in the
00:42:20
sketch he claimed he'd only been at the post office because he was waiting for a lift
00:42:25
to work from a friend police confirmed this to be true and the man and sketch were eliminated from the
00:42:33
investigation the Press quickly picked up on the case and a journalists from all over France
00:42:45
flocked to LA panch the Sleepy Village instantly became a hive of activity journalists fired for the wilman's
00:42:55
attention interviewing family members all over town in the hopes of unveiling some salacious details
00:43:02
if the villains were concealing any secrets every media Outlet wanted to be the first to break the story
00:43:11
before long more than 130 journalists stationed themselves around town LA pange and ormondsey were traditional
00:43:22
villagers residents were mostly private and shared the vilmaan's mentality that family
00:43:28
conflicts should be sorted out within one's family therefore the presence of the media
00:43:35
wasn't particularly well received when journalists poked around for information they were often told to mind
00:43:43
their own business others divulged to gossip and rumors about the family that the Press were
00:43:50
quick to spread one particularly salacious detail was that Gregory's grandmother had a history
00:43:58
of incest in her family another was that Gregory's grandfather Albert had been raised in a broken home
00:44:06
when he was just a baby his mother hit his three-year-old brother who suffered a fatal head wound
00:44:13
Albert's mother served time in prison upon her release she cheated on her husband which became the Catalyst for
00:44:22
him ending his own life when Albert was just 12 years old the Press were quick to paint the
00:44:30
villamons as a lower class and socially marginalized bunch of hillbillies played
00:44:35
by dark secrets in reality regardless of their solid background they were a relatively normal
00:44:42
working-class family typical of the area on Saturday October 20 Gregory vilmart's
00:44:51
funeral was held at the LA panch Cemetery hundreds of mourners gathered while members of the press hungrily snapped
00:44:59
photographs of the bereaved family police believed Gregory's killer was among the crowd and were on the lookout
00:45:07
for any suspicious Behavior it was a somber affair with emotions running higher Gregory's small body was carried out in
00:45:18
a child-sized coffin his beloved stuffed monkey Kiki to be buried by his side his mother Christine clung to her
00:45:27
husband as they shakily made their way through the procession as Gregory's coffin was lowered to the
00:45:34
ground Christine wailed in despair Gregory my baby why did they do this to you Gregory come back
00:45:47
it all became too much for Christine who collapsed loved ones hurried to carry her
00:45:53
unconscious body away his photographers eagerly captured the drama on Monday October 22 six days after
00:46:06
Gregory's death the police received an unprompted phone call from a local woman named Marie Angela Roche
00:46:14
she had married in to the villman family and harbored some suspicions of her own
00:46:21
Marianne urged the police to look into jean-marie's half-brother Jackie she believed that Jackie and his wife
00:46:30
Liliane were behind the crow police questioned Jackie that he had an airtight Alibi for the day of Gregory's
00:46:40
murder unbeknown to the rest of his family Jackie's wife Liliane had actually received a call from the crow seven
00:46:48
months earlier in March of 1984. the crow had spoken of his resentment for jean-maray and his plan to cast
00:46:58
suspicion against Liliane and her father once again he ranted about Jackie's illegitimate status and to the alleged
00:47:07
infidelities of his mother Monique Liliane had recorded the call and provided it as proof of her and her
00:47:15
husband's innocence police believed it to be genuine Jackie and Liliane villmann were not the
00:47:24
crow police found the accusation leveled against the couple by Marie Angela Roche
00:47:32
unusual it was merely based on the time Jackie had left his house on the morning of the
00:47:39
crime it had nothing to do with anything they also found it strange that mariange
00:47:46
called the police from a public telephone instead of her own home perhaps she didn't want someone in her
00:47:53
house to hear mariach was summoned to the police station to provide a statement she explained that she'd called from a
00:48:04
public phone so that she wouldn't wake her husband who was sleeping in preparation for a night shift
00:48:10
it was he who suggested that she contact authorities in addition to Jackie and Liliane
00:48:18
Marianne she implicated some distant relatives of the vilmaans married a couple Chantelle and Daniel ollard
00:48:27
police visited Chantelle and Daniel to see if marianja's allegations held any weight
00:48:33
they conducted a search of the couple's home but found nothing to link them to the crime
00:48:39
Chantelle and Daniel were taken into custody for questioning but quickly ruled out of the investigation
00:48:48
when asked where she was on the afternoon Gregory villmann was killed Marian Chala Roche said she'd been at
00:48:55
work her Alibi checked out but she'd been off work sick since October 18. two days
00:49:03
after Gregory's death police found this curious everything about her unsolicited
00:49:11
statement had them asking questions was it possible that mariange was casting blame on other members of the
00:49:18
family to detract attention from her own police soon visited Marie Angela rocha's
00:49:32
home in ormondsey to question her husband 29 year old Bernard LaRoche Bernard was a cousin of Jean-Marie
00:49:41
villman the two had grown up together but they drifted apart over the years yet they
00:49:49
lived somewhat parallel lives both worked as Factory Foreman in different organizations and both had
00:49:57
four-year-old Sons born just 10 days apart although they didn't talk much anymore
00:50:03
Bernard maintained a close friendship with jean-marie's brother Michelle the two considered each other best
00:50:11
friends and saw each other regularly [Music] Bernard told police that on the day
00:50:18
Gregory was abducted he'd spent most of the day with his art Louisa de Jacques she lived just 200 meters from the
00:50:28
LaRosa's home in the afternoon Bernard chopped a wood he and his four-year-old son Sebastian
00:50:37
then visited Michelle Wilman at his home around the corner at 4 30 PM they returned to Aunt luizets
00:50:48
Bernard had arranged to meet a friend there so they could go buy some wine together but the friend never arrived
00:50:57
instead Bernard drove to his friend's house but he wasn't there either [Music] Bernard returned to his aunt's house at
00:51:06
around 5 30 P.M he hung around for about 15 minutes before driving to the supermarket to buy
00:51:13
the wine at this point it was roughly 6 p.m he bought the wine then headed to the
00:51:21
nearby hotel to pick up some money he'd won on a recent bet he then returned to Aunt louisette's for
00:51:29
dinner before leaving to work the night shift at around 8 45 pm Bernard claimed he didn't hear about
00:51:37
Gregory villmann's murder until the following morning when asked to provide a handwriting
00:51:44
sample Bernard was reluctant it was only after insistence from mariange that he finally obliged
00:51:53
he was then free to leave police reflected on Bernard's movements from the day in question
00:52:02
curiously there was only a 45-minute window that was unaccounted for between 4 45 and 5 30 pm
00:52:13
the same time that Gregory was abducted [Music] foreign will be back shortly thank you for
00:52:33
supporting us by listening to this episode's sponsors thank you for listening to this
00:52:41
episode's ads by supporting our sponsors you support casefile to continue to deliver quality content
00:52:55
[Music] Michelle cornelly owned a cafe in docile not far from where Gregory's body was
00:53:02
found on the afternoon that the boy went missing Mr Corner Lee had noticed a strange man sitting in his establishment
00:53:12
he'd been there between 4 35 and 4 40 p.m and again between 5 and 5 15 pm he looked nervous and kept glancing at
00:53:23
both his watch and the Cafe's clock the men looked to be aged in his late 20s or early 30s he had a thick mop of
00:53:32
brown hair and a thick brown mustache that came to the corners of his mouth another witness had spotted a similar
00:53:41
looking man lurking around Gregory School the day of and before the crime only this one had a thicker mustache
00:53:49
that dropped under his chin and was driving a green car around 5pm on October 16 this witness
00:53:57
spotted the same man near the lepange garbage dump just a short distance from Gregory's home
00:54:05
both Mr konalei and the school witness had helped police create a composite sketch of this man
00:54:13
there was no denying The Uncanny resemblance to Bernardo LaRoche Bernard also drove a metallic greenish
00:54:21
gray Peugeot 305. a car of similar color had been seen circling La panch in the days leading up
00:54:28
to Gregory's abduction a team of handwriting experts were tasked with comparing the letters from
00:54:36
the crow to the handwriting samples provided by numerous family members they announced their cursory findings
00:54:43
stating that the writing on the final letter from the crow matched that of Bernardo LaRoche
00:54:50
they'd also discovered something else of Interest handwriting Impressions from another piece of paper
00:54:57
one of the handwriting experts highlighted the imprint with a special toner and placed the piece of paper
00:55:03
against a grazing light at the bottom of the paper two letters were clearly visible B and L
00:55:12
the initials were superimposed against Bernard LaRoche's signature there were undeniable similarities
00:55:23
the team wanted more time to conduct tests and confirm for sure but for the police this was all they needed to hear
00:55:32
the following day they went to the LaRoche residence and placed Bernard under arrest
00:55:38
his wife marianche was detained as a witness a search of the LaRoche home uncovered a
00:55:46
record of the grand JoJo song we are thirsty a song which the crow had played to the vilmaans
00:55:54
a telescope was also found the LaRoche's house was positioned on a hill with views towards the homes of
00:56:02
Gregory's grandparents Albert and Monique and Gregory's Uncle Michelle it was possible Bernard had watched
00:56:10
their comings and goings with this telescope and used this information to taunt them with
00:56:17
Bernard claimed he didn't need a telescope to see Albert and Monique's house and that even with one Michelle's
00:56:23
house still wasn't visible according to Bernard his father had given him the telescope 15 years prior
00:56:32
and it hadn't been used for some time Bernard's father Marcel had died in June 1982 a little over two and a half years
00:56:42
before Gregory was killed in the search police found a note Marcel had written that claimed Albert is
00:56:51
blackmailing me they wondered if Bernard could be motivated to seek revenge on the vilmaan
00:56:58
family on behalf of his father to whom he was very close but Bernard said he'd found the note
00:57:05
after his father's death he claimed it didn't relate to Albert villman but to his maternal Uncle Albert
00:57:13
Jacob Bernard strongly denied having anything to do with Gregory vilmann's death
00:57:21
an officer asked if he'd ever sent threatening letters to the vilmaan family Bernard responded
00:57:28
never I have nothing against them think why would I do that tell me why in the end
00:57:42
it was a legitimate question although the circumstantial evidence was stacking up against the Bernard LaRoche police
00:57:49
had yet to identify a compelling motive no one in the family had previously suspected Bernard of being the crow
00:57:58
he was very close with Gregory's Uncle Michelle and maintained good relations with the family overall
00:58:05
he wasn't known to be an aggressive or Shady person and remained impartial to any family conflicts
00:58:13
upon reflection these factors actually worked against him Bernard saw Michelle several times a
00:58:21
week and was privy to all that was going on in the villman's lives he lived close to Gregory's grandparents
00:58:28
and was present at family gatherings this not only meant he had access to the information divulged by the crow he was
00:58:36
also close enough to witness the impact of the Crow's ongoing harassment the LaRoche family had a phone line
00:58:44
installed in 1981 coinciding with the cause to Jean-Marie and Christine villmann
00:58:51
their house also had a staircase enduring several of the Crow's phone calls several recipients thought they
00:58:59
could hear someone climbing steps in the background criminal profilers believed that the
00:59:06
crow likely presented themselves to the world as pleasant and somewhat withdrawn
00:59:12
they would avoid drawing attention to themselves by being amicable and friendly behind closed the doors it was a
00:59:19
different story the crow was likely driven by hate jealousy and resentment Bernard had most of the things that his
00:59:31
cousin Jean-Marie villman had but nothing came quite as easy Bernard's mother had died shortly after
00:59:38
giving birth he and his father went to live with his maternal grandparents Jean-Marie on the other hand had enjoyed
00:59:46
a relatively normal childhood surrounded by his parents and siblings it had taken Bernard six years of hard
00:59:54
work and study to prove himself worthy of the position of factory foreman and not until his late twenties
01:00:01
in contrast jean-marie's form and role had been handed to him at a young age without significant effort or any
01:00:08
qualifications his role also paid better Bernard's marriage to mariange had been
01:00:17
marred with arguments and accusations of infidelity jean-marie's marriage to Christine was
01:00:23
harmonious and solid even fatherhood had presented Bernard with a unique challenge
01:00:31
his son Sebastian had been born with a large cyst on his left temple it was surgically removed but had to be
01:00:39
constantly drained by a tube behind his ear because of this Sebastian required constant supervision
01:00:47
little Gregory villmann on the other hand had been the very picture of good health
01:00:54
Christine vilnan recalled that Bernard had tried to hit on her at a family wedding several years prior
01:01:01
perhaps he'd never recovered from The Sting of the rejection and resented that Christine had chosen Jean-Marie over him
01:01:11
the crow had been fixated on Jackie vilmaan's illegitimate status within the family
01:01:17
he had alleged there was another quote bastard child among them rumors spread that Bernard could have in
01:01:26
fact been Albert villmann's biological son if Bernard was suspicious of this it could explain his resentment towards
01:01:35
Albert perhaps he begrudged the fact that Albert had taken responsibility for Jackie but not for his own flesh and
01:01:42
blood Bernard's close friendship with Michelle villman was also significant Michelle was known to be immature and
01:01:52
naive he harbored unhealthy jealousy towards people he viewed as above him in particular his brother Jean-Marie
01:02:02
inferiority was a real soft spot for Michelle and his fits of Envy had previously caused many conflicts within
01:02:09
the family shortly before Gregory's death Michelle villman and his wife had visited
01:02:16
Jean-Marie and Christine's home the couple had showed off their new leather lounge suite and talked about
01:02:23
their plans to extend their house it was highly likely that Michelle told Bernard about this visit
01:02:32
if Bernardo LaRoche harbored intense feelings of jealousy and inadequacy towards Jean-Marie investigators
01:02:39
believed this could have been enough to finally push him over the edge shortly after Gregory's death Bernard
01:02:47
had told journalists to jean-care from Paris match magazine they got what they deserved they've paid
01:02:55
for what they've done Bernardo LaRoche maintained his story about going to find his friend during
01:03:07
The crucial time period on Tuesday October 16. he said that when he returned to his
01:03:14
aunt louisette's house at around 5 30 p.m his sister-in-law Muriel ball was there watching television
01:03:22
police questioned Muriel the 15 year old high school student had recently moved in with the laroces to
01:03:29
help take care of their son she confirmed that on the afternoon of October 16 she'd taken the bus home from
01:03:36
school Muriel went to her aunt to Louisa's house at around 5 20 P.M Bernard LaRoche was already there he was
01:03:47
sitting in the kitchen with his son in his lap watching television and given that Gregory villmann had been
01:03:55
abducted sometime after 503 PM this meant Bernard wouldn't have had enough time to pull off the crime
01:04:03
with these Alibi verified police had no choice but to let him go however investigators reviewing the
01:04:12
statement soon noticed the discrepancy Bernard said when he'd arrived at louisette's house Muriel was there
01:04:21
watching television however Muriel gave the reverse she said that Bernard was already there when she
01:04:29
arrived after school something wasn't right Muriel had told police that her usual
01:04:38
bus driver dropped her home on the afternoon in question police made inquiries around Muriel's
01:04:44
high school and discovered that the usual driver hadn't been working that day several of Muriel's classmates recalled
01:04:53
that she hadn't been on the bus at all Muriel had a distinct head of curly red hair and a face full of freckles so her
01:05:01
absence was easily noted one friend recalled saying Muriel leave school in a cocky green vehicle that
01:05:09
matched the description of Bernard LaRoche's Peugeot police confronted Muriel with this
01:05:18
discrepancy it didn't take long for her to crack she admitted she'd lied about catching
01:05:26
the bus home according to Muriel when she finished school on October 16. Bernard was
01:05:33
waiting out the front in his car his son Sebastian was with him Bernard called Muriel over
01:05:42
it was the first time he had ever picked Muriel up from school Shea assumed it was because he needed
01:05:49
someone to babysit Sebastian she hopped in Bernard drove them to LA panch Muriel wasn't familiar with the area her
01:06:01
parents didn't have a car so she didn't know the surrounding region well they drove up a hill and Bernard parked
01:06:08
on the side of the road Muriel could see a white house with a Red Roof Bernard got out but didn't explain why
01:06:19
he walked towards the house Muriel stayed in the car with Sebastian when Bernard returned shortly afterwards
01:06:28
he had a small boy with him who was wearing a Woolen hat Muriel hadn't seen the child before but
01:06:35
he looked to be the same age as Sebastian the boy got into the back seat Bernard made one more quick stop in La
01:06:46
panch then drove the group to another Village that Muriel wasn't familiar with Bernard got out taking the boy with him
01:06:58
she wasn't sure how long Bernard was gone for but when he returned he was alone they then drove back to Aunt louisette's
01:07:08
house arriving around 5 30 pm Bernard left to buy wine before returning home and then eventually
01:07:16
leaving for his night shift at the factory the next morning Muriel saw a story about Gregory villmann's murder in the
01:07:25
newspaper she immediately recognized him as the boy in the car and knew that Bernard was
01:07:31
responsible at the request of police Muriel drew a sketch of their roots and the places
01:07:39
they stopped in LA panch and docile the locations coincided with both the vilmaan residents and where Gregory's
01:07:47
body had been found Muriel told police she was relieved to get this off her chest
01:07:55
she explained I didn't say anything in the days following the tragedy because I was
01:08:01
afraid to talk about it I lied so that my brother-in-law and my sister wouldn't be bothered
01:08:09
I thought it was better to tell the truth because it was too serious a thing to hide
01:08:16
police were stunned by Muriel's confession concerned she could be making it up to
01:08:23
get attention they gave her the option to recant her statement Muriel declined adamant that she was
01:08:30
telling the truth she stated it's true I remember it perfectly I will remember it all my life
01:08:44
the presiding Magistrate Judge Jean-Michel Lambert was out of town when Muriel confessed
01:08:51
it was therefore decided that no action would be taken until his return three days later on Monday November 5
01:08:59
judge lamb there met with Muriel she repeated her confession saying she hadn't come forward earlier because she
01:09:08
was afraid of Bernard Bernard LaRoche was immediately arrested and charged with the murder of Gregory
01:09:15
vilmann Bernard's family were devastated Marie Ange tearfully told journalists there was no way her husband was guilty
01:09:27
she said he couldn't even kill a rabbit it was a sentiment shared by others Jackie vilmaan told the press that if
01:09:36
Bernard was guilty it was a Jekyll and hired situation even Gregory's parents found it hard to
01:09:43
believe with the Jean-Marie telling reporters that he could no longer trust anyone
01:09:49
he'd always found Bernard to be helpful and kind he stated if it's really him let Justice be served
01:10:01
a Press Conference was held during which should judge Lambert revealed that Muriel ball was a partial witness and
01:10:08
had been in the car with Bernard this was a big mistake at the time there was nothing in French
01:10:17
law that protected a minor from being taken into custody Muriel was only 15. she had learning
01:10:26
difficulties and was in a special education class at school Muriel hadn't been offered a lawyer or
01:10:33
advised of her right to remain silent by publicly releasing her name judge Lambert had essentially outed Muriel to
01:10:42
her entire family the following day journalists were summoned to the home of Bernard and
01:10:50
Marianne LaRoche the family had an announcement to make as the Press gathered outside Muriel
01:10:59
approached to their microphones Stone faced and with her chin quivering slightly she said
01:11:08
I wasn't in Bernard's car I have never been to LA panch or docile I never went to that place where that
01:11:16
kid was drowned [Music] Muriel admitted she'd made the whole story up she said the police told her that
01:11:26
Bernardo LaRoche had already confessed to the crime before feeding her details they threatened to send her to a
01:11:34
Reformatory school if she didn't go along with the confession Muriel claimed she only complied out of
01:11:41
fear as for the sketches of the roots they supposedly took Muriel said a police officer had shown her these locations
01:11:52
she was simply repeating his instructions Marielle said she took the bus home as
01:11:59
usual on October 16 and didn't see Bernard at all that day she told the reporters
01:12:07
Bernard is innocent Bernard is innocent I never went with my brother-in-law Muriel went to the courthouse and
01:12:17
formally retracted her previous statement judge Lambert was undeterred even without the teenager's confession
01:12:27
he believed there was enough evidence against Bernard LaRoche to secure a conviction for Gregory vilmann's murder
01:12:35
Bernard remained in custody as investigators continued building their case against him
01:12:42
for many Muriel's retraction didn't exonerate Bernard in fact it had the opposite effect
01:12:51
a neighbor of the LaRoche family told the press that on the night Bernard was arrested he overheard Muriel being
01:12:58
beaten by her family Bernard's wife mariange strongly denied this accusation a family member later explained that
01:13:08
they'd thrown rocks at trespassing journalists which could have accounted for the noise
01:13:15
Marie Ange told reporters the family had no influence over Muriel whatsoever Muriel backed this up
01:13:24
she maintained the police had scared her into providing the confession and she'd
01:13:29
only come forward with the truth because she needed to clear Bernard's name by Friday November 9 24 days had passed
01:13:40
since Gregory villmann was killed all of the individuals Bernardo LaRoche had mentioned crossing paths with on the
01:13:47
afternoon of Gregory's death were assembled at the local courthouse hundreds of angry locals gathered
01:13:55
outside hoping to catch a glimpse of the alleged child killer and the other players in the story that continued to
01:14:01
dominate National headlines as Bernard was led from a police car some members of the crowd chanted kill
01:14:11
him kill him Witnesses were able to verify Bernard's movements for the entire day of October
01:14:19
16. save for that crucial 45-minute window where Gregory was abducted Bernard's lawyer called for his
01:14:28
immediate release the request was denied the Gregory's parents the fact that Bernard had visited Gregory's Uncle
01:14:38
Michelle on the day of the crime was highly suspicious they knew how close the two cousins were
01:14:46
and how jealous Michelle was of jean-marie's success on the night of Gregory's murder
01:14:52
Michelle had also been so agitated that he'd been placed in police custody although Michelle had reported receiving
01:15:01
calls from the crow over the years he'd been alone every time it was no different when he received the
01:15:09
final call announcing that Gregory had been killed what if this call hadn't actually taken
01:15:15
place at all was it possible that Michelle was just following orders from someone else
01:15:24
Jean-Marie started prying Michelle for information which deeply angered their parents
01:15:31
they'd always been very protective of Michelle and the insinuation that he could have been involved in Gregory's
01:15:37
death was something they weren't prepared to stand for it caused a great rift in the family
01:15:45
Jean-Marie severed all tires with his parents completely a groundskeeper was clearing out some
01:15:57
fur trees on the riverbank behind the fire station in dosel it was right next to the location Muriel
01:16:04
ball claimed Bernardo LaRoche had gotten out of the car with Gregory it was where investigators had concluded
01:16:12
Gregory's body was put in the river before floating Downstream in nearby bushes the groundskeeper found
01:16:21
a hypodermic needle and a two milliliter vial of insulin they immediately notified the police
01:16:29
used for the daily treatment of diabetes when given in high doses insulin can cause a person to slip into a
01:16:36
hyperglycemic coma the question was therefore raised as to whether Gregory could have been injected
01:16:43
with insulin prior to being thrown in the river this would explain the Serene look on
01:16:49
his face as well as the lack of defensive marks on his body the forensic pathologist who conducted
01:16:57
Gregory's autopsy confirmed this was possible however they hadn't been instructed to
01:17:04
run any toxicology testing nor had they checked Gregory's body for any needle marks
01:17:12
when freelance journalist sylvain abar found out about the insulin he began making inquiries and made a startling
01:17:19
discovery someone with ties to the investigation was indeed a diabetic Muriel Bowles
01:17:28
mother Janine sylvain Tracked Down Janine's nurse she confirmed that Janine used the same
01:17:37
brand of insulin and syringes as those found on the riverbank case Magistrate Judge Jean-Michel
01:17:46
Lambert didn't think the line of inquiry was worth pursuing further it was common for diabetics to
01:17:53
administer insulin in public places and the brand was widely used so the discovery wasn't necessarily attributed
01:18:01
to the crime besides some new Witnesses had come forward with some much more compelling
01:18:08
information at the textile Factory where Christine villamon worked it was customary for
01:18:19
employees to be let out just before 5 PM so that those who needed to could make the five o'clock train
01:18:26
a majority of Staff members took advantage of this even if they had their own transport
01:18:33
after clocking out on the afternoon of Tuesday October 16 1984. one employee was walking towards the LA panch post
01:18:41
office to visit her sister who lived nearby she saw one of her colleagues parked
01:18:47
outside of the post office it was Christine vilmaan moments later another co-worker
01:18:56
approached they noticed Christine doing a U-turn in front of the building she didn't drive towards Gregory's
01:19:04
nanny's house like she cleaned but in the opposite direction two other co-workers came forward to
01:19:12
report that They too had seen Christine vilmann at the LA panch post office straight after work
01:19:18
they had watched as she dropped at least one envelope into the mailbox the final letter sent by the crow had
01:19:26
been postmarked 5 15 P.M the investigation was getting bigger than the local police could handle
01:19:35
under immense pressure to solve the increasingly turbulent case and judge Lambert finally appointed the National
01:19:42
Police to take over they confronted Christine with the allegations that she'd been spotted at
01:19:49
the post office on the afternoon her son was killed Christine said that her colleagues were
01:19:55
mistaken she had been there the day before Christine claimed that after finishing
01:20:02
work on Monday she'd posted a check for a mail order police contacted the company in question
01:20:11
they produced an invoice confirming they had indeed received a mail order from Christine vilmarn which had been dated
01:20:18
Monday October 15. when Christine described the outfit she'd worn on the Monday it matched the
01:20:26
description given by those who believed they'd seen her at the post office on the Tuesday
01:20:32
but for the new investigators enough seeds of Doubt had been planted to Warrant the question
01:20:39
could Christine villaman have been involved in her son's murder it was a possibility they'd considered
01:20:48
from early on for a few reasons neighbors who had helped Christine look for Gregory when he first went missing
01:20:55
hadn't recalled seeing the young boy play outside at all they also hadn't seen anyone else in the
01:21:02
area this led some to doubt Christine's story from the get-go whoever posted the letter claiming the
01:21:11
crime had to have full certainty that they'd have access to the boy and would be able to pull off the crime
01:21:17
as the boy's mother Christine could ensure this Gregory's post-mortem concluded that the
01:21:25
four-year-old had died from drowning a theory emerged that Gregory might have died by accident
01:21:32
perhaps Christine had left him unsupervised while he was taking a bath and he'd either drowned or been
01:21:39
electrocuted fearing the repercussions she could have staged a crime to deflect attention from
01:21:45
herself alternatively she could have intentionally drowned him in the tub before disposing of his body in the
01:21:53
vallone river to place the blame on the crow the problem with both of these theories
01:22:00
was timing Christine had picked Gregory up from his nanny's house just after 5 PM
01:22:07
neighbors had then seen Christine desperately looking for her son just after 5 30.
01:22:13
if Gregory had died in Christine's care it meant she had just under half an hour
01:22:18
to get him redressed and clean the bathroom for any traces of accident or Foul Play
01:22:25
she to then have to get his body to the car without her neighbors seeing before making the 12 kilometer round trip from
01:22:32
LA panch to docel somewhere in all this she had to write and post a letter claiming the crime and
01:22:40
find time to call Michelle vilmaan and take responsibility for the murder all without being seen
01:22:49
nobody had seen Christine or her black Renault on the road leading from LA panch to docel
01:22:56
although one of Christine's neighbors recalled they were walking towards the villman's home at around 5pm on October
01:23:03
16. Christine drove past giving them a small wave by the time the neighbor reached the
01:23:11
villman's house Christine's Renault wasn't in the carport the vallone river contained unique
01:23:20
microorganisms but the water found in Gregory's lungs during his autopsy hadn't been tested
01:23:27
therefore there was no way of confirming whether he had been drowned in the river
01:23:31
or elsewhere [Music] with the media and public still fixated on Gregory villmann's murder it didn't
01:23:43
take long for word to spread that Christine was now being considered a suspect the possibility that the young boy had
01:23:52
been killed by his mother was scandalous news papers and magazines didn't hold back
01:23:59
with Sensational headlines and articles geared towards Christine's guilt they honed in on the possibility that
01:24:07
Christine could have been the Crow from the very beginning the public were quick to jump on board
01:24:15
within days the same people who were sympathizing with The Grieving mother were now accusing her
01:24:22
Christine responded those who believe I'm guilty are mistaken why would I have done that I no
01:24:30
longer have a child I don't have anything [Music] police began looking for any discrepancies in Christine's statements
01:24:40
and exploring possible motives but Christine's story about the afternoon in question had never changed
01:24:49
they looked for evidence that Christine could have been cheating on Jean-Marie what if Gregory wasn't jean-marie's
01:24:56
child after all was it possible that Christine could have had an affair with Bernard LaRoche
01:25:03
could she have been working in cahoots with Bernard or another of jean-maray's relatives
01:25:09
but there was nothing to suggest she was anything but unwaveringly faithful Christine and Jean-Marie had remained by
01:25:19
one another sides throughout the entire ordeal and the accusations against Christine didn't change that
01:25:27
they appeared in public holding hands and gave interviews strongly rejecting the possibility that Christine could
01:25:34
have been involved in Gregory's death in any capacity still consumed by grief at the loss of
01:25:42
their son the couple was advised that having another baby as soon as possible could help with the healing process
01:25:50
Christine soon found out she was pregnant when news got out outrage ensued some viewed her haste to have another
01:26:01
baby as a sign that she wasn't affected by Gregory's death others thought Christine's pregnancy was
01:26:08
a form of protection if she was guilty of killing Gregory her fragile state meant she might be spared
01:26:15
from jail Christine and Jean-Marie denied all the rumors and accusations they publicly announced their desire to
01:26:25
undergo a lie detector test the request was sent to the French president it was denied
01:26:39
in addition to having a new person of interest for Gregory's murder the case against Bernard LaRoche started falling
01:26:46
apart when the team of handwriting experts had examined the final letter sent by the
01:26:53
crow the minutes of their meeting hadn't been recorded in compliance with the code of criminal procedure
01:26:59
therefore their evidence about the impressions of Bernard LaRoche's initials were deemed invalid on a
01:27:06
technicality the letter had since been tested for fingerprints but the wrong material had
01:27:12
been used not only did this mean no fingerprints were detected but the Impressions were
01:27:18
no longer visible any possible evidence on the ladder had been effectively destroyed
01:27:26
speculation of a conspiracy theory started to take hold there were allegations that the case's Magistrate
01:27:33
Judge Jean-Michel Lambert had been working closely with Bernard's defense team questions were raised as to why the
01:27:42
evidence was so poorly handled why hadn't further forensic testing been ordered during Gregory's post-mortem
01:27:50
was Judge Lambert simply trying to throw Christine under the bus just to deflect
01:27:55
suspicion from Bernard but as Bernard's lawyers pointed out there were other questions too
01:28:05
Gregory's parents had described him as being wary of strangers that therefore didn't make sense that he
01:28:12
would have happily followed Bernard into his car without protest the two barely knew each other
01:28:19
conversely had Gregory screamed or fought surely his mother or neighbors would have heard something
01:28:28
furthermore there was no way that Bernard could have known that Gregory would have been playing outside
01:28:33
unsupervised on the afternoon of the crime nothing could have guaranteed him that
01:28:39
there would be no Witnesses the idea that he preemptively picked up Muriel Bowl to help him pull off the
01:28:46
kidnapping was therefore implausible it also made no sense that he would have kidnapped Gregory in the presence of his
01:28:54
young son and sister-in-law additionally Bernard had no prior criminal record hadn't made any
01:29:03
semblance of a confession and most importantly no legitimate reason to kill Gregory villman
01:29:12
by February 1985 three and a half months had passed since Gregory's murder with the case against Bernardo LaRoche
01:29:21
becoming increasingly unstable judge Lambert made a controversial decision Bernardo LaRoche would be released from
01:29:30
romant on judicial supervision Bernard immediately returned to his house and work with the journalists
01:29:37
following him every step of the way [Music] meanwhile headlines continue to circulate about Christine villaman's
01:29:46
possible involvement in her son's death the pressure against the villains was mounting
01:29:53
in late March Christine was interrogated for nine hours her story never changed [Music]
01:30:02
a newly appointed panel of handwriting experts was tasked with examining the letters from the crow
01:30:09
while the first team believed the writing was a match for Bernard LaRoche the new panel concluded that Bernard's
01:30:15
handwriting was mostly incompatible the family member whose handwriting showed the most consistencies with the
01:30:23
crow was deemed to be none other than Christine vilmaan [Music] finding was announced by the media
01:30:35
before investigators had a chance to break the news to Christine and Jean-Marie now four months pregnant the news had a
01:30:44
profound impact on Christine she started bleeding and had to be rushed to hospital
01:30:51
investigators visited her at her bedside as hordes of journalists gathered outside
01:30:58
they revealed to Christine that her handwriting matched the crow at a probability of 80 percent
01:31:06
Christine commented you can have me do as many dictations as you want and say it's a 100 match it
01:31:14
will not change my behavior or the truth the results did nothing to change Jean-Marie villman's mind
01:31:24
he told reporters between the experts and Bernard's word I trust my wife but For The Grieving father it was all
01:31:36
becoming too much not only had he lost his beloved Son he felt like the media and a law
01:31:42
enforcement were trying to turn him against his wife the health of their unborn child was now
01:31:50
in danger for Jean-Marie Bernardo LaRoche's guilt was obvious he was convinced the police were
01:31:58
involved in some kind of cover-up why was a guilty man walking free while his wife was being tortured with such
01:32:07
cruel and unfounded accusations [Music] on March 29 Jean-Marie visited Gregory's
01:32:15
grave it had been five and a half months since Gregory's lifeless body had been pulled
01:32:22
from the river as his father knelt before Gregory's white headstone adorned with flowers
01:32:28
angel statues and a picture of Gregory's smiling face Jean-Marie thought he heard the voice of
01:32:35
his young son go ahead Papa it said [Music] to be continued next week [Music] [Music]
01:33:12
[Music]