A little over 11 years ago, 5 members of the Dupont de Ligonnès family were found dead, buried under the terrace of their garden: Agnès, the mother, as well as Thomas, Arthur, Anne and Benoît, the children. However, 1 body is missing: that of the father of the family, Xavier Dupont de Ligonnès. Vanished into thin air 10 days after the estimated date of the last death, this man is today the most wanted person in France, and above all, the missing piece of a police investigation that thousands of people are still trying to solve. If you are one of those amateur detectives, who dream of finding a detail that no one has yet seen, you are in the right place!
The Detective Box team has tried to gather and organize for you all the information that we think might be of interest. After all, with 11 years of investigation, it's not easy to see clearly! Summary of the crime and the life of XDDL, but especially family secrets that you didn't know, theories and gray areas, we tell you everything. So, are you ready to dive into the Xavier Dupont de Ligonnès case?
The crime: the Nantes massacre
Facts
In 3 days, 5 murders were committed at 55 Boulevard Schuman, in Nantes.
- Night of April 3-4, 2011: Agnès, Benoit, Anne and Arthur are shot dead in their sleep
- Night of April 5-6, 2011: Thomas is killed in the same circumstances
Autopsy
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Victim
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Injuries
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Substances
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Agnes
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2 bullets in the head, one in the left temple
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Citalopram (antidepressant) in the blood
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Arthur
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2 bullets in the skull
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Lormetazepam (sleeping pill) in blood and liver
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Anne
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2 bullets in the head at point blank range
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Lormetazepam (sleeping pill) in blood and liver
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Benoit
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3 bullets in the head and 2 in the torso
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Lormetazepam (sleeping pill) in blood and liver
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Thomas
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1 bullet in the chest and 2 in the head
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Lormetazepam
(sleeping pill) in the blood and liver |
The Murder Weapon
The weapon was a 22 long rifle . Dupont de Ligonnès inherited it from his father, Hubert de Ligonnès, 2 months before the events. He bought ammunition and a silencer on March 12, a little less than a month before the crime. The rifle has never been found.
Key moments of the case
For those who are curious, Le Figaro published the letter that XDDL sent to the family's relatives on April 8. You can read it here .
The life of Xavier Dupont de Ligonnès
A childhood marked by abandonment
XDDL's childhood was marked by the departure of his father , Hubert de Ligonnès, when he was only 10 years old. He thus became the only man in a ruined family, due to the debts left by his father, and quickly took on the role of head of the family. Some believe that this abandonment certainly influenced the personality and values of young Xavier, thus creating the following belief: a father who abandons his family, by leaving or committing suicide, is either a coward or selfish . Not to mention that the ruin of his mother, Geneviève, probably also played a role in his obsession with money .
A family like no other
The bankruptcy did not last, however. In the 1970s, Geneviève founded the "Church of Philadelphia ", a small prayer group that had the characteristics of a sect (children being taken out of school, compulsory dress, various prohibitions, strict diet, etc.). Thus, it would seem that after Hubert de Ligonnès left, she ensured her lifestyle by taking money from her followers. Her group, based on traditionalist Catholicism and devotion to the Virgin Mary, considered that the Church had been invaded by the devil and that the end of the world was approaching.
Father Jean de la Villarmois, who was aware of the "Church of Philadelphia", had given a report in 1995, referring to a "sectarian group manipulated by a sick person" , in particular because of a particular event. Indeed, the same year, claiming to have been informed of the imminent advent of a new world, Geneviève summoned her followers to the castle of one of them. There, she asked all the men to have sexual relations with one of her daughters , Christine, 29, in order to conceive "the Savior". It was after this episode that some of the followers decided to distance themselves from the group, before finally warning the priest.
If XDDL was not present during this episode, it must still be remembered that having been born in 1961, he spent his adolescence , pivotal years in the construction of a person, in contact with this sect . In addition, investigators discovered that in 2009, the group was still active. It seems that Dupont de Ligonnès had also resumed contact , as proven by his presence on the forum of the "Church of Philadelphia", as well as the concerns of his wife, Agnès, who had spoken about it to her friends, confiding that she was afraid of her mother-in-law.
A ruined man
XDDL lived a large part of his life applying the Ponzi pyramid model. In other words, he was in debt to URSAFF, three consumer loan services, his friends, and his family. In order to perpetuate this system, he borrowed from some to repay others, making sure to satisfy everyone.
It is in this context that in February 2009, 2 years before the tragedy, XDDL reconnects with Catherine V., a childhood friend and above all, his first love. This reunion will ultimately end in disaster for the father of the family, who will end up in debt to her, to the tune of €50,000 . But how did this happen?
First of all, when XDDL sees Catherine V. again, he discovers a woman who is a business leader and has no ties, who has succeeded in her life, while he is a salesman who has had a series of failures. He begins a relationship with her for a few months, during which they will live in luxury. However, the father of the family does not really have the means. Later, he ends up proposing to his mistress to invest in his new successful plan, the "Crystal project", and she accepts. Unfortunately, Xavier does not invest this 50,000€ in his idea, but rather uses it to continue having a good time with Catherine and to repay the debts he has already accumulated. The sum quickly melts away, and in October 2009, XDDL is forced to reveal the truth to Catherine: he spent it all, but not on the project.
After a few months of conflict, things accelerated in July 2010. Catherine wanted her money and there was no question of waiting any longer. On the 5th, Xavier received an email from his former conquest. She informed him that the file had been forwarded to a lawyer , and mentioned, among other things, the talents he had "once again" demonstrated in "the art of deception and lying" . It was on the 11th of the same month, while discussing the disastrous situation with his two best friends, Emmanuel Teneur and Michel Rétif, that a terrible idea began to germinate in Xavier Dupont de Ligonnès' mind. The email contained the following words:
"I will therefore be, at the end of August-beginning of September, with my back to the wall and a final decision to make: suicide alone or collective suicide."
Personality and assumptions
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Compulsive control
Xavier Dupont de Ligonnès was also a compulsive controller, as evidenced by his affair with his wife and his best friend, Michel Rétif. In 2006, he discovered that his two close friends were having a "long-distance" affair. In other words, they never acted on it but maintained text and video exchanges. The father's reaction was most original: he suggested to Rétif that they "share" his wife and he accepted. From then on, he ordered that all text messages and emails exchanged between Agnès and Michel be copied and sent emails himself, summarizing each evening (advantages and disadvantages of the relationship, performances, sexual positions performed, etc.). One email, entitled "size", stood out. In fact, XDDL detailed a method for properly assessing the size of a penis and mentioned himself in the third person, boasting of a size well above the world average.
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Obsession with money
Investigators have highlighted another characteristic personality trait: an obsession with money. Investigations have revealed that XDDL kept a document on his computer detailing the amount his children had cost him since their birth . By exhuming the data, which had previously been deleted from the suspect's computer, it was discovered that Arthur represented an expenditure of €100,600, Thomas €80,800, Anne €63,000 and Benoît €38,300.
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Desperate father...
The famous July 11 email corroborates the theory that XDDL was simply a man drowning in debt , who preferred to disappear and take his family with him, rather than leave them in difficulty. The events of his childhood (his father's departure, his mother's ruin) also support this theory. In addition, the bodies were buried with care , as shown by certain elements suggesting a sort of funeral ceremony to help the victims leave in peace. We note among other things the presence of religious objects (rosaries, crosses, statuettes of the virgin, etc.) and other tools, such as a lighter, candles, a vial of strong alcohol... In addition, all the neighbors described Xavier Dupont de Ligonnès as a man ready to do anything for his children, an honest person and proud of his own. But after all, between the deep nature of a man and what others think of him, there is sometimes a huge gap...
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...or criminal genius?
This is why others assume that XDDL was in reality a cold, calculating and above all manipulative man, as mentioned, among other things, in Catherine V's email. Thus, wishing to escape his debts and build a new life, he would have killed his family to start over. To corroborate this hypothesis, we can mention a conflict that took place between Agnès and him. When her parents died, his wife inherited a sum of €350,000, money that she spent little by little by granting loans to her husband, in order to finance his projects. In the summer of 2015, Dupont de Ligonnès asked his wife what was left of the inheritance but Agnès refused. Following this incident, he left the family home for 3 months , during which time his wife lost almost 20 kilos, in particular because of the constant pressure he exerted on her . In fact, XDDL does not just send him dozens of emails, he also writes a 6-page letter to their relatives and friends . There, he criticizes his wife's choice, a choice that is "stupid", "ridiculous", "extreme", "born of an incomprehensible psychological block", while his is simply "normal".
After 3 months, Dupont de Ligonnès returned home and wrote a new open letter with Agnès in order to "try to erase the negative image she had given of him and which they had readily believed" . In the paragraph attributed to her, Agnès "regrets having put spokes in his (Xavier's) wheels" and justifies her behavior by the influence of "bad friends". She also writes "Xavier has never lived off me like an inheritance greedy man".
It is therefore difficult to say with certainty whether Xavier Dupont de Ligonnès was a desperate man or a man ready to do anything to achieve his ends.
The mare
The main mystery of the Dupont de Ligonnès affair lies in a single question: Where is he today? Is he dead? Did he commit suicide? Is he still on the run? If so, where? Abroad perhaps, or in France... and what if he were near you...?
What is known for sure is his journey between April 10 and 15, which we have summarized. After this period, there are only theories to know where Xavier Dupont de Ligonnès is.
Theory #1: A Hidden Suicide
Some believe that the father committed suicide. It is true that half of the Nantes investigators team supports this theory and, after all, XDDL had spoken about it to his friends Emmanuel and Michel: "suicide alone, or collective suicide". However, where could he be? Perhaps his body lies in a cavity around Roquebrunes-sur-Argens. For the record, a clairvoyant also says she had a vision of the suspect's suicide, who hid under a tombstone in a partly abandoned cemetery before shooting himself. In any case, XDDL is said to have looked for a hidden place, which he chose so that the discovery of his remains would not shock his very Catholic family, already shaken by the quintuple murder.
However, after such a methodical 5-day escape, why commit suicide? The question is legitimate, without forgetting that the body was never found, while investigators combed the Var region with a fine-tooth comb , to the point of searching a monastery!
Theory #2: A massacre for a new life
There are a few things that could suggest that XDDL had not planned to commit suicide and did not do so. One question can already be asked: why spend a week in good hotels if you have regrets and plan to end your life? We also know that investigators found, at 55 Boulevard Schuman, a map with places marked with a cross, others highlighted and 4 numbered cities: 1) La Rochelle, 2) Nice, 3) Pau and Tarbes, 4) Perpignan. Could this be the plan for a methodically prepared escape? No one knows. In addition, it is possible that the man was seen on April 26, 2011, in Lançon-Provence, at a gas station. Since the investigators did not find his trace, the report cannot be certified, but the individual is an exact copy of XDDL and the cashier noticed that he was missing a tooth, information that had never been revealed to the press...
Theory #3: A hidden life abroad
As many know, XDDL had announced a surprise departure abroad to explain the sudden disappearance of the family to their loved ones. The theory of a new life in the United States, under the protected witness program, has been denied by the American government, but we can still think that XDDL is in another country.
There is, among others, this letter sent to Emmanuel Teneur after the crime, where we can read "Stay there until I return: I need you" , or this other message, addressed to Michel Rétif, "I will think of you there... (I don't have the right to tell you where, but you went there with me... in November 90... clue to dig into... LOL)", but at that time, the two friends were in the United States. The trail of an escape to Asia, more precisely to the Philippines, has also never been closed, although never supported either. We simply know that XDDL traveled there several times, and that he sent money orders to a priest named Joven Soliman ... In any case, we must keep in mind that Dupont de Ligonnès had several months to prepare his escape and that the French borders could be easily crossed (Spain, Italy, Switzerland ...). He could therefore be anywhere.
Unsolved Mysteries
Don't worry, each box contains its own mini-objectives that will help you advance the overall investigation every month.
Question #1: Did XDDL have any accomplices?
You may have already read it somewhere, but the question remains unavoidable. The murders themselves could have been carried out by a single man, but we cannot affirm this with regard to the concealment of the bodies. Indeed, digging under the terrace of 55 Boulevard Schuman meant working in a space 1m20 high, knowing that approximately 2.5m3 of earth were moved, the work seems titanic , without forgetting that Dupont de Ligonnès only had 4 days to do it, in addition to moving his sons' apartments, and that he had back and shoulder problems .
You may have already read it somewhere, but the question remains unavoidable. The murders themselves could have been carried out by a single man, but we cannot affirm this with regard to the concealment of the bodies. Indeed, digging under the terrace of 55 Boulevard Schuman meant working in a space 1m20 high, knowing that approximately 2.5m3 of earth were moved, the work seems titanic , without forgetting that Dupont de Ligonnès only had 4 days to do it, in addition to moving his sons' apartments, and that he had back and shoulder problems .
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His friends ?
Could his two best friends, Emmanuel Teneur and Michel Rétif, have helped him? After all, they were the only ones to whom XDDL had mentioned his money problems and they had never hesitated to lend him money. Could he have gone further in their support? In any case, all the investigators noticed their total devotion to the father of the family. We also know that during his escape, from April 10 to 15, Michel Rétif set out on a journey to see his daughter and that his itinerary was very similar to that of his friend. Finally, to succeed in an escape, you usually need an accomplice or money, but no slush fund that could have financed the escape has ever been discovered. Unfortunately, two of the most likely accomplices have disappeared: Michel Rétif committed suicide in March 2018 and Emmanuel Teneur died of a heart attack in January 2019.
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His family ?
There are still Geneviève and Christine , Dupont de Ligonnès' mother and sister, who never believed in his guilt. We can also mention some disturbing facts about them. Christine, for example, waited 1 and a half months before giving investigators a message that her brother had left her, as for her mother, she tried to recover a mysterious package addressed to her son. A package that the police never found. We also know that Geneviève sent a missive to the "Church of Philadelphia" on July 25, 10 days after the last appearance of her thread, where it was written that "Agnes and the children are doing well and are adapting well to their new life. [...] he also often thinks of his little mother whom he loves dearly, without forgetting Bm his savior!". "Bm" probably referring to Bertram de Verdun, Christine's husband, and therefore Dupont de Ligonnès' brother-in-law. Overall, it was actually the entire group of the "Church of Philadelphia" that was able to provide assistance to Dupont de Ligonnès, but the secrets of the sect will probably remain well buried...
There is one thing that remains to be clarified: XDDL's family has continuous access to the files and progress of the police, and this as the family of the victims, although they are also the family of the number 1 suspect. They are therefore one step ahead of any actions of the investigators .
Question #2: Was XDDL inspired by John List?
Have you ever heard of John List? This American father was the author of the quintuple murder of his entire family in 1971. But that's not all: after methodically executing his relatives, he disappeared for 18 years ... does that ring a bell? Just like Xavier Dupont de Ligonnès, List was raised by his mother in a strict religious environment , as an adult, he too was a professional failure, riddled with debt , and had not told anyone about it. He was finally found on June 1, 1889, after having rebuilt his life under a new identity, that of Robert Clark. However, at that time, XDDL was in the United States and the impact of the affair was such that there is almost no chance that he would not have heard of it!
When questioned by investigators, he justified his crimes by explaining, "I grew up with the idea that you should provide for your family and to do that you had to be successful at work" and adding, "I was convinced that if you kill yourself, you will not go to heaven."
It is impossible to say that XDDL was inspired by this drama to construct his crime, but the similarities are definitely disturbing ...
Question #3: Did XDDL send a message to investigators?
During the father's stay at the Formule 1 hotel, a passage from the video surveillance recordings caught the attention of the investigators. We see Xavier Dupont de Ligonnès quickly looking at the surveillance camera with a book in his hand. It is the novel Glacé , by Bernard Minier. The police read the book and noted some disturbing details. First of all, the director of the psychiatric hospital is called Doctor Xavier, but above all, the investigators noticed similarities between the serial killer and the man they are looking for . He is a “manipulative, sociopathic and intelligent”, who applied himself to “making corpses disappear”, not to mention the epilogue of the book: “death extinguishes crime” ... So, message or coincidence?
We're coming to the end of this article, we hope you found it interesting! For our part, we really enjoyed diving into the case and exchanging our hypotheses on possible scenarios. In any case, XDDL's life has not been a long, quiet river, between abandonment, sect, professional failure, libertinism, bankruptcy, etc. The whole team agrees that he is surely the author of the quintuple murder and that suicide is unlikely. On the other hand, it is impossible to agree on his real motivations, or on his link with John List. We also think that he had accomplices ... we bet on "the Church of Philadelphia", and you?
Unfortunately, the vast majority of the traces left by the suspect have now disappeared. So there is little chance of finding him, even if nothing says it is impossible. But do not be disappointed! If you want to catch a dangerous murderer in just a few days, we have what you need with the Detective Box investigation, so don't wait any longer to start your own hunt for the murderer! Of course, your investigations will not last 11 years, but we guarantee you an investigation that is just as exciting.
If you want to learn more, we recommend the magazines N°136 and N°137 of Society , which interested us a lot! You can find them for sale on ebay , or search on the net. For very precise information, there is also the blog created by Christine, the sister of Xavier Dupont de Ligonnès, here .
Please note that this is a site that aims to prove the father's innocence, so some of the statements may be exaggerated.
All you have to do is look at your neighbors, your colleagues, even your friends... What if you knew Xavier Dupont de Ligonnès, without even knowing it?
