New ‘tent’ twist in homicide of Brit household gunned down and executed in Alps 12 years in the past
A British family were murdered in the Alps 12 years ago with the cold-hearted killer never captured, but now French police claim they have a new lead which could bring justice to the family
A new twist has emerged in a 12-year-long case centred around a family who were brutally shot and killed in the Alps.
Saad Al-Hilli, 50, was an Iraq-born satellite engineer from Surrey. While travelling through the Alps, he was shot dead at the wheel of his BMW on a remote mountain road near Lake Annecy in 2012. His wife Iqbal, 47, and her mother Suhaila, 74, were also there and killed. A local cyclist, Sylvain Mollier, 45, was caught in the incident and killed in a hail of bullets.
The brutal crime sent shockwaves throughout Europe and is still discussed now, with the latest twist providing a different point of view to the incident. The murderer has still never been caught – but new theories suggest justice could be carried 12 years on.
Saad’s eldest daughter Zainab, seven, was left sadly critically injured after being shot in the shoulder and pistol-whipped, while her four-year-old sister Zeena miraculously survived by being hidden under her mother’s lifeless body for hours. So far, they believed a semi-automatic pistol of Swiss origin, a Luger PO6/29, was used to carry out the murder.
At the time, French police made several blunders in the case which meant that the suspect, thought to have been a tourist-hating former Swiss soldier in his 50s, got away scot-free.
Theories are now suggesting the person behind the murder could in fact be a mystery camper who pitched their tent near to the murder scene. Some claim they also pitched their tent near another tourist murder scene, where a similar gun was used.
The alleged Danishnational was staying at a campsite on a rented a pitch in the campsite of Saint-Jorioz, where the Al-Hilli family had set up their caravan from September 1, 2012.
Although his identity is hidden, it is claimed the Dane pitched up on September 3, and left the day of the massacre. French police say they tracked his tent to the site of another mass death.
Both murders used rare Swiss weapons, with claims that the triggerman behind the murders was “a seasoned former soldier, trained in very particular shooting techniques” by Swiss special forces, who had “gone off the rails,” French media reported.
The judge of the coldcase also added that he bullet wounds line up with a deadly shooting technique taught in the special forces. They are taught in so-called “assassin courses,” run for a chosen few military personnel.
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