A French murder trial that opened Monday has transfixed the public because of the mystery at its core: where is the victim's body?
Cédric Jubillar, a 38 year-old painter-decorator, is accused of killing his wife Delphine nearly five years ago in a fit of jealous rage. He has always denied the charges and, other than circumstantial evidence, investigators have struggled to build a case. There is no body, no blood, no confession, and no witness.
With its unexplained central fact and its cast of characters from small-town southern France, the affair has become a social media sensation.
Self-declared investigators have set up countless chat groups where they swap theories and share testimony – much to the irritation of police and families. These groups are the equivalent of the bistro counter – but with more people, said psychoanalyst Patrick Avrane, author of a book on attitudes to crime.
The Jubillar mystery began at the height of Covid lockdown when – in the early hours on 16 December 2020 – Cédric contacted the gendarmes to report that his wife had gone missing. Delphine, who was 33 at the time, was a night nurse in a clinic not far from their home in Cagnac-les-Mines. The couple had two children, aged six and 18 months.
Cédric was a habitual cannabis user and barely held down a job. Delphine was involved with another man she had met online and they were discussing divorce. Police conducted extensive searches, but Delphine's body was never found, leading to the case against her husband.
The prosecution will argue that Cédric had a motive due to their impending split, supported by odd actions on the night of her disappearance and witness statements about threats he made. A shocking claim from two of Cédric's acquaintances suggests he confessed to the murder and revealed where her body was, yet no evidence has corroborated these accounts.
As the trial proceeds in Albi, it is expected to last four weeks, featuring 65 witnesses and over 16,000 pages of compiled evidence. Writer Thibault de Montaigu likened the case to a mystery novel, pointing out the sheer improbability of committing the perfect crime without leaving a trace.
The court's decision could hinge on the thin line between circumstantial evidence and reasonable doubt, making it a pivotal moment in a case that has gripped the nation.
