The strange letter and the vanishing Dupont De Ligonnès family | Forensic Files

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the city of nantes is situated in the northwest of France in the heart of the Loire Valley wine region the Loire River
curved through the city which is defined by its striking blend of heritage architecture eighteenth-century facades
and Mediterranean inspired dwellings the layout is typical of many French cities
the medieval town centre framed by densely packed historic suburban buildings before giving way to newer
homes and public housing as the sixth the largest city in France not has been praised by the European Commission for
offering a higher quality of life the six-member du Pont de lagunes family lived at 55 robert schumann boulevard
and narrow two-story residence in a wealthy residential area west of the city their home was part of a row of
matching terrorists buildings overlooking a busy thoroughfare interspersed with patisserie
bars and other businesses the family lived a comfortable middle-class life 50-year old patriarch xavier dupont the
Legionnaires had aristocratic tires and two noble ancestry he was raised in a devout Catholic household in the regal
upper-class city of Versailles west of Paris it was there that he met an nesodden je an elegant young woman two
years his junior Xavier and danya's dated throughout their teens and became engaged but the
relationship ended before their marriage went ahead in the years following their
breakup Xavier indulged his love of American culture and country music by traveling
the famous highway route 66 in the United States the couple reunited in Versailles at
which point and yes had a one-year-old child named Arthur from a previous relationship
Xavier told a friend he was in love and willing to take on the responsibilities of parenting Arthur which was unusual
for a man of his status at the time Xavier and Dan yes were married in a quiet ceremony in 1991 and went on to
have three children Thomas in enter Benoit the family lived throughout France and spent nine months travelling
across the United States before settling in 19 2003 zabi heir was an entrepreneur who owned
several small online businesses including one based in Miami his main focus was a hotel and restaurant guide
for truckers traveling salespeople and business owners titled route to commerce you or salespersons Road in English and
yes worked part-time as a supervisor in a primary school and also taught religious studies at a local Catholic
school by 2011 the couple's oldest child 20 year old Arthur was studying information technology at a university
an hour away he bordered on campus but returned to the family home in non to every weekend
where he worked at a local pizzeria his brother 18 year old Thomas had moved an hour race to the city of on J where he
studied music though he too visited home most weekends the family's youngest 16 year old Ann
and 13 year old Benoit still lived with their parents attending school at the esteemed poveri Sacred Heart Catholic
College in was a dedicated and popular student who played the piano did some occasional modeling work and was
passionate about her religion Benoit was equally popular he enjoyed rollerblading
and singing in the church choir and was looking forward to his upcoming confirmation sacrament on the night of
Sunday April 3 2011 - du Pont de Ligon s family - Thomas went out for dinner and
a movie upon their return home Xavier found his sister Christine and - left a voice message relaying the pleasant
events of their evening he ended the message by saying okay I'm going to put the kids to bed and say good night to
everyone talk to you soon maybe [Music] [Music] over the following week neighbors of 55
Robert Schuman Boulevard noticed the property had fallen unusually silent and still its window shutters which were
usually kept open had been closed for some time the black Volkswagen Golf convertible belonging to a newest DuPont
the leakiness had been parked on a nearby street for several days the family's two pet Labradors were
heard howling and crying throughout the night a week prior but hadn't made a sound since on Wednesday April 13 a
concerned neighbor called the non police and four officers arrived at the DuPont
the leakiness residence to conduct a welfare check a printed sign was pinned to the letterbox that read please return
all mail to sender thank you the officers found the family home in a relatively orderly condition with the
kitchen and bathrooms spotlessly clean the fridge and bedroom wardrobes had been emptied into the beds had been
stripped of their sheets photos had been removed from their picture frames into various cupboards and drawers were close
to empty but they found no evidence of foul play police were contacted again later that afternoon
distant by a member of an users family who had in their possession of four-page typed a letter authored by Xavier
several other relatives and friends of the DuPont the Legion s family had been mailed at the same letter it read in
part hi everyone huge surprise we have to leave urgently for the u.s. due to a very particular set of circumstances
that we will explain below you're receiving this letter by conventional post because for the next
few years we can't communicate any other way for safety reasons when you read this letter we will no longer be in
France and won't be able to return for an as-yet undetermined period of time you must be wondering what's going on
here's the story at least as much as we're allowed to tell you when we started our company in Miami in 2003 the
person who helped us start put us in contact with the DEA a Drug Enforcement Administration a sort of American drug
squad with agents on the ground in several countries who were looking for a French national to infiltrate the French
nightclub scene to obtain information about drug trafficking and money laundering networks without drawing
attention to themselves through my business route to commerce you I found myself in a different city every evening
with a legitimate reason to make contact with nightclub bosses so I was the ideal
candidate once I was tested and briefed I accepted my mission of working incognito for the DEA under the
condition that I'll maintain secrecy everything has gone according to plan in the nightclubs for the last seven years
until now with the information that I have collected in this time I have become a
key witness in an upcoming trial involving major international drug trafficking kingpins the trial will have
to take place in the u.s. in the next few years the date has not yet been determined what complicates matters is
that certain tips had recently led us to believe that my cover may have been blown and unfortunately we received
confirmation of this yesterday therefore the situation has now become potentially
dangerous for us here and has required us to take emergency measures when I first went undercover I accepted that I
might be placed into the federal witness protection program this is what we now have to do and we're not doing it with
any excitement but because it's necessary and there's no way around it so we have been taken into the
protective custody of the US government and transferred to the US and we have new identities which must of course be
kept secret by the time you read this letter we will officially no longer exist as French citizens we will be US
citizens living in the u.s. like any other US citizen except we will be forbidden from communicating with our
family and friends for an undetermined period of time at least until the trial is over
the hardest thing there is some tension with the children who couldn't tell their friends and are forbidden from
using Facebook and other online networks we had to give up the dogs luckily someone took both of them so they won't
be separated the children's schools are aware as Arthur's and Thomas's Atlanta Lords and Daniels's and Arthur's
employers the official story is that we have been transferred to Australia for work without providing any specific
details it would be good if you could spread this false story on Facebook and elsewhere we hope that doesn't drag on
for too many years of course we send all our love and are thinking of you very much
during this enforced separation take good care of yourselves we'll have so many stories to tell you later on Xavier
and yes Arthur Thomas in and des Benoit the hard part is going to be getting used to our new names the letter went on
to explain that the family had been allowed to store valuable personal items such as photos souvenirs computers
paperwork jury and weapons into a safe but they hadn't had time to finish sorting through the rest of their
possessions they didn't trust the Americans to do a thorough job and assigned to the task to France with the
key to their house available in the meter box outside 70% of the household items were to be taken to the dump
excluding several items of expensive furniture which were family heirlooms that needed to be shipped to one uses
family some other high-value items should be sold including the family's two cars the
Volkswagen Golf convertible and Citron's entia with the proceeds given to Xavier
sister Christine a third car a Citroen c5 was unsellable and had already been scrapped for parts the property's
utility services needed to be cancelled with relevant paperwork left on the dining-room table the foosball table
entertainment equipment and musical instruments could be divided between those who helped clear out the home the
letter specified no need to worry about the metal detector or the canoe which can stay there nor the rubble and to the
other mess piled up on the terrace at the end of the garden and in the basement that was all there when we
moved in through his work Xavier had been developing a loyalty system for restaurant guests and he
encouraged a friend to pursue the project explaining it would provide his family with a comfortable income upon
their return to France he asked his sister Christine and her husband Bertram to manage the family's bank accounts
where payments of approximately 4000 euros would be coming in for the next few months
Christine initially thought the letter was a joke but recognized the methodical instructions listed within were typical
of her brother she had never quite understood what Sevilla did for work and the possibility that he was an
undercover agent made sense to her Bertram was less convinced questioning the letters light tone and thought it
strange that Jay Pierre took the time to detail and delegate tasks under such critical circumstances the American
Embassy in Paris contacted the United States Drug Enforcement Administration where officials confirmed they had never
heard of xavier dupont the lagunas and neither he nor his family were part of any witness protection scheme police
attended the DuPont the Ligon s residence for a second time and walked through the house garden and cellar but
once again found nothing particularly concerning it appeared as though the family had simply left in a hurry
the timeline leading up to the family sudden departure exposed far more red flags Xavier and aeneas took three of
their children arthur and benoit out for dinner and to see a movie on Sunday April 3 their remaining son Thomas was
not in attendance as he spent that weekend at his college campus in on J the morning of Monday April 4 saibya
found his wife's employer to inform them that she had fallen ill with gastro and
wouldn't be coming in a nurse's bus later received a text message from Xavier stating her illness had worsened
and being hospitalized when colleagues tried to reach out a text message from an us
informs them that she was uncontacted or while in hospital at the same time Xavier found an and been while school
excusing their absence over the coming days due to illness that evening Xavier drove to one Shea to pay Thomas a
visit taking his son II up for a meal at a high-end restaurant the pair were courteous to staff but barely spoke to
one another as they dined Thomason asked he wasn't feeling well and walked outside to get some fresh air and a rest
in the car the next day Thomas was at a friend's house when he received a call from his father alerting him to his
mother's hospitalization following a bicycle accident Thomas told his friend her injuries weren't serious but his
father had insisted he returned home that night he sent a Facebook message to an ex-girlfriend with whom he was still
friends to let her know before boarding a train - not at approximately 10:30 p.m. he disembarked at the city station
a half an hour later where his father was waiting mobile phone data revealed the pair drove to the family home
arriving at approximately 11:45 p.m. the following morning of Wednesday April 6 2
events friends paid her a visit to see how she was doing the shudders on her bedroom window were closed there were
lights on from inside another upstairs room suggesting someone was home a note stuck to the front door warned to
visitors not to ring the bell as the children were sick and shouldn't be woken the girls left and to receive the
text from man the next day explaining she was still sick and wouldn't be around for a few days that same day
Thomas's friend texted to see how he was doing into a scent in response I'm not coming to yours a mil a second
detects derived a later that day and read really ill I'm not coming to class their blunt and impersonal tone struck
his friend Azad as Thomas typically wrote long warm messages peppered with jokes the same friend received a third
and final text from Thomas the next day that read on out of battery my dad's looking for a new charger for me like
his younger siblings Arthur had also been absent from class his college had been contacted by Xavier at the
beginning of the week who explained to that Arthur had been hospitalized following a scooter accident Arthur's
girlfriend went to the DuPont the Legion s home to check in but no one answered the door even though a light was on
downstairs on Thursday April 7 a friend of Arthur's sent a text message to one yes asking if her son was ok the
response read hi don't worry Martha has gone with his dad to the Paris region to
help with the move he forgot his cell and my husband has forgotten his battery charger we told the school he fell off
his scooter he'll be back on Saturday working at the pizza bar have a nice day Xavier was active over email during this
time sending a message to a longtime friend Vincent offering him ownership of his business websites he needed a speedy
response as he was finally fulfilling his dream of moving to the United States with his family and so they would be
leaving the following day Vincent could assume ownership of the websites on the condition that he didn't tell anyone
about the deal or the DuPont the lega NASA's upcoming departure Xavier's email declared if you are not
interested the sites will disappear from the web personally I do not care I turn
the page and go to new adventures Vincent wrote back right away agreeing to the deal and Xavier provided
him with the relevant information and access codes immediately Vincent then sent another email asking savior for
written authorization to manage the domain names but didn't receive her apply the following night Xavier
responded to an email from his brother-in-law Bertram that asked how things were going with the family at
read everything's fine bedroom you'll hear more detailed news soon through Christine bye for now for the best
Xavier around midday on Saturday April 9 a neighbor saw Xavier out on the street
holding a bottle of some kind by then the letters about his family's inclusion into the witness protection program were
in circulation with the first received by Sophia's best friend and Manuel Avery read the letter multiple times unsure
what the make of it before heading for 55 Robert Schuman Boulevard only to find no one home the house keys weren't in
the meter box as the letter described but in their place was a handwritten post-it note informing they would be
deposited between Sunday and Monday night that same evening Xavier arrived through
Arthur's College where he was witnessed cleaning out his son's dorm room the next morning his metallic blue Citroen
c5 was caught speeding by a traffic camera on the way to 1j where at nine a.m. he began clearing Thomas's room of
its belongings a neighbor held the door open for Xavier who nonchalantly commented something along the lines of
what you wouldn't do for your children on Monday April 11 in and benoît school received an envelope that contained a
check covering the teenagers fees for the remainder of the academic year they also received the type 2 letter from
Xavier advising that he was withdrawing his children as his work required the family to urgently relocate to Australia
similar letters also arrived to one uses workplace the pizza shop where Arthur was employed as well as the colleges he
and Tomas attended all establishing the family sudden departure overseas upon receiving the perplexing letter and uses
boss attempted to call her that there was no response several people tried to contact the family throughout the week
but to no avail and their Facebook accounts remained inactive two relatives who visited
Robert Schuman Boulevard to investigate finding the house key to number 55 had since been put in the meter box upon
entering the home they too noticed that seemingly deserted State with police examining the property soon after when
concerns had peaked a missing-persons fall was officially opened for Xavier Aeneas Arthur Thomas and and Benoit du
Pont de lagunes with news of their mysterious disappearance broadcast the locally investigators searching for the
missing family looked into their finances and realized that while the close-knit household appeared well-off
were heavily in debt in 2003 Xavier had used the majority of Vanessa's sizable inheritance to register a series of
businesses but none garnered much success and recorded more debt than revenue the first net surf concept was
registered in Miami following his family's trip to the United States and was intended to be a hotel and
restaurant guide for truckers traveling sales people and to their employers the second cell ref was registered in France
and provided corporate clients with a hotel restaurant and Conference Centre verification service
Xavier travelled across France staying in hotels using a fake identity to vet the establishments himself his third
business endeavor route dekimasu referred to in his letter was the French version of the net surf concept there
were also a couple of other businesses this ABA had registered but never activated almost all of his companies
had laid dormant for several years and between 2004 and 2009 he was officially registered as unemployed in 2009 tax
records indicated the DuPont the Legion s household had earned a total income of
just over 5,000 euros followed by 4,000 euros in 2010 their house rent cost 18,000 euros per annum and - this didn't
include living expenses bills food or school fees so Xavier sought loans from relatives and friends to make ends meet
he had also opened to multiple bank accounts and credit cards in different names
police searched the missing family's property again on Tuesday April 19 and found several receipts for suspicious
items purchased in the weeks leading up to their disappearance including large garbage bags a box of adhesive plastic
paving slabs cement a shovel a hoe and 410 kilogram bags of the line the lion which had been purchased from
several different stores throughout not was of particular interest also known as
calcium oxide lime is a chemical compound that prevents odor and is widely incorrectly believed to speed up
the decomposition of human remains on Thursday April 21 Robert Schuman Boulevard was closed off as detectives
armed with a search warrant entered number 55 the investigators responsible for carrying out this search noted the house
was messier than their colleagues had previously led them to believe with garbage bags full of clothing in the
bedrooms and various items scattered about documents appeared to be missing as was Xavier's desktop computer the
family's computer cell phones hard drives and two USB sticks in a bathroom cabinet detectives found several open
two bottles of medication to treat depression and anxiety despite the house being in slight
disarray it was otherwise clean and contained to no rubbish several empty bottles of cleaning liquids scrubbing
brushes a mop and a broom indicated it had recently been given a thorough clean a rear door led out to a small Terrace
that overlooked an unkempt backyard garden consisting of a patch of dirt and some sprouting weeds in xavius letter he
had specifically told his friends and family to ignore several bulky items stored underneath the terrace claiming
they were there when the family moved in but an officer searching the yard noticed something out of place several
plywood boards had been fastened to the right-hand side of the terrace blocking access to underneath the house some
boards were also lying on the ground and soil around them appeared to be fresh the officer picked up one of the board's
finding a dog bowl she brushed aside some of the loose soil and discovered cement that had not quite said her
crumbled when she dug her nails into it and she began digging until her fingers came into contact with something soft
she moved to the crumbled cement aside exposing a human leg forensic investigators conducted a thorough
search under the terrace which shed its tallest point was only 120 centimeters high in the location where the officer
had found to the leg they came across a layer of powdered lime they dug deeper revealing the rest of the body followed
by three others they were identified as 48 year old and yes DuPont the Legionnaires and three of her children
20 year old Arthur 16 year old Ian and 13 year old Benoit buried with them were the family's two Labradors anguses
remaining son 18 year old Thomas was found buried in a separate pit to the left-hand side of the terrace each
victim was dressed for bed and had been wrapped in a sheet or blanket along with
a Virgin Mary figurine a crucifix necklace or a set of rosary beads they were placed inside individual garbage
bags with their heads resting against blood-stained pillows bullet shells belonging to a 22 caliber long rifle
were also found inside the bags autopsies revealed each victim had been shot at close range
likely with the muzzle of the rifle pressed against their bodies Vanya's Arthur and Dan had been shot twice in
the head so had Thomas but he had also been shot twice in the chest youngest child Benoit
had sustained the most wounds three to the head and another two to the chest the family dogs had also been shot none
of the victims exhibited defensive wounds indicating they had likely been asleep at the time they were killed
toxicology tests revealed trace amounts of sleeping pills in each victim except Dainius implying the children had been
drugged before their deaths small amounts of human and animal blood was found on a mop a bucket and on a chair
in the kitchen no fingerprints were detected on the bodies of the victims nor the materials that were wrapped in
it appeared as though the five murders had been committed inside the home with the perpetrator going to great lengths
to clean the crime scene the coroner was unable to determine an exact date of death but estimated the family had died
between 10 and 21 days prior to the discovery of their remains phone records showed in had sent a text to a friend at
12:30 a.m. on Monday April 4 and an analysis of Angela's sleep apnea machine used to help her breathe that night
showed it stopped working a few hours later about 3:30 a.m. Annius was likely killed around 2:00 this time before the
perpetrator went into the bedrooms of Arthur in and Benoit and executed them one at a time followed by the dogs they
were then buried together under the terrace before the perpetrator went about meticulously cleaning the crime
scene thomas wasn't home at the time his mother and siblings were slaughtered though he was summoned to the house the
following evening of Tuesday April 5 by his father and was likely murdered than buried that night he's bout of illness
while dining with Xavier the evening before might have been a reaction to sleeping pills that were planted in his
meal though his murder didn't go ahead until the following night for reasons unknown
the whereabouts of the deceased family's patriarch Xavier DuPont the leakiness remained unknown despite ample sightings
of the man and continued communications from him up until he mailed out his written send-off emerging as the prime
suspect it appeared that in the days following the murders Xavier contacted his family
schools and workplaces and to use to their phones the texts concerned friends to evade suspicions over their absence
he then fabricated a story about being placed into witness protection in an effort to justify their permanent
disappearance a press conference was held immediately during which a public prosecutor described the murders as a
methodical execution and called the content of Xavier's farewell letter delusional and contradictory an
investigation was already underway to find him with police utilizing an automatic number plate recognition
system that enabled them to track down Xavier Citroen c5 that was located in a hotel car park in the coastal town of
Raqqa burned sera John's just over 1,000 kilometers southeast of Anant the car was abandoned and Xavier himself
was nowhere to be seen news of the slangs had made national headlines a majority of the media
stories disputed the possibility that Xavier had been working as a covert DEA agent although some entertained the idea
members of Xavier as extended family told reporters they believed he was innocent and being held hostage
somewhere against his will his sister Christine made an appearance on national radio station RTL urging her brother to
come forward to police if this was not the case she acknowledged there were many signs pointing towards her
brother's guilt but described him as a doting and affectionate father incapable of committing the crimes
and yeses family also spoke publicly declaring they would not pass judgment until Xavier was found and could explain
himself meanwhile a woman named Catherine had come forward to police declaring that she and Jair had recently
ended a two-year long affair her claims were substantiated by text and email communication between the pair who had
dated as teenagers and reconnected online in 2008 Xavier was going through a difficult period at the time as his
father had suffered an embolism and - the affair began soon after in late 2009 and Zambia's request Catherine provided
him with a loan of 50,000 euros with the savvy heir promising to leave his family
for her he failed to do so and in January of 2010 he emailed Catherine explaining he was quote at the bottom of
the hole and asked her to save him by providing another loan she refused requesting he repaid the money she had
already lent him Xavier replied that he was three months behind on rent and only
had 500 euros for the family's food that month with the government chasing him for tax payments in further emails you
say Pierre said he suffered from insomnia anxiety attacks and was plagued by morbid ideas he claimed he was no
longer in love with his wife and entertained to the idea of drugging his family with sleeping pills before
setting their house on fire he also suggested throwing himself in front of a truck so that Annius would benefit from
his 600,000 euro life-insurance policy Catherine broke things off with Xavier later that year and in early 2011 she
began legal proceedings to recover the money she had loaned him Catherines legal counsel ordered a
bailiff to attend the du Pont de Ligon s home to provide a valuation of their possessions when the bailiff visited the
property on the morning of Tuesday April 5 no one answered the door four days later on Saturday April 9 catherine
received a letter from xavier which included the line we had a good time together but now you will know
misfortune it became increasingly clear that the image Xavier and danya's presented to the outside world was
starkly different to what went on behind closed doors interviews with friends and
family revealed that in 2005 Annius had developed a close relationship with one of Xavier as best friends the two
embarked on an emotional affair exchanging texts and long phone calls during this period xavius work required
him to be away from home for long stretches at a time which led an us to suspect he was also being unfaithful
when Zambia found out about his wife's emotional affair the pair separated only to patch things up six months later and
resumed their marriage they sent a detailed letter to their friends and family in which annuus accepted blame
for their temporary breakup and praised jva as a wonderful husband Xavier expressed the desire to absolve
the negative image their loved ones might have developed as a result of Vanya's bad-mouthing him aneesa's family
reported that she had grown frustrated with the amount of time Xavier spent away and had been contemplating leaving
him yet there were also reports to the contrary a close friend said Xavier loved danya's deeply and always hurried
home on Friday afternoons so they could attend to square dancing classes together the family had recently
vacationed in the south of France for a family wedding and Zambia's aren't told the media the husband and wife quote
held hands and gave the impression of being perfectly happy one close friend and confidante maintained annuus were
still madly in love with Xavier in addition to the mounting financial troubles and infidelity the couple were
also heading in different spiritual directions Annius was a devout Catholic and extremely pious attending Mass every
Sunday Xavier had distanced himself from religion in his adult years and was furious when his wife paid a catholic
guru 3,000 euros for his services a neces priest told investigators that she regularly sought advice about the strong
tensions in her marriage when it came to religion he felt the troubles between non-us and
Xavier were significant enough that divorce seemed inevitable it was discovered that in the months leading up
to the murders Xavier had visited a shooting range in not he had enrolled for shooting lessons in December 2010
selling staff he would soon be inheriting his father's 22 caliber long rifle and wanted to obtain his firearms
license he attended several lessons and received his license in February 2011 around the time he inherited the rifle
from there on in he attended the range regularly usually hiring a weapon from the venue but occasionally bringing his
rifle he raised the little concern from staff appearing friendly and always smiling although his rifle was fitted
with a silencer which was generally frowned upon receipts confirmed Xavier had purchased
the silencer along with ammunition a month before the murders in the lead-up to April 4 he attended to range four
times in quick succession on March 26 28 30 and April 1 on the final visit he brought thomas and benoit
with him who had recently started the lessons of their own the three usually ended their practice with a drink but
this time they told their instructor they didn't have time to stick around as they had other plans
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people gathered in central not to participate in a silent march in honor of Ann yes Arthur Thomas in and Deven
wah DuPont Allegan s they walked with the deceased friends and family 255 Robert Schumann Boulevard leaving
flowers on the street out front and yes his car was still parked on a nearby street with one mourner riding in the
dust that had gathered on it you had no right we miss you a funeral service was held days later with the streets around
to the church closed to traffic to facilitate the crowds of mourners loudspeakers broadcast the service to
the hundreds outside who couldn't fit inside the building as individual black hearses transported the five wooden
coffins to the church stories were shared fondly by their loved ones with a member of a neces family addressing the
Friends of the children directly quoting pope benedict xvi fear not believe in the strength of life and of love and yes
was laid to rest with her four children in an ancestral tomb in the town where her birth family originated locating the
surviving member of the family xavier dupont the Legionnaires had become the number one priority
authorities were able to piece together his movements in the days following the murders through credit card records
witness reports CCTV footage and highway monitoring systems by the early afternoon of Sunday April 10 you Savior
had cleared out both Arthur and Thomas's dorm rooms with the latter's belongings
found in dumpsters nearby after traveling 90 kilometers south he stopped to eat lunch at a restaurant where he's
mixed demeanor was noted as both seemingly relaxed yet in a hurry by that evening here checked into a
hotel in the town of cou wheel bajo where he dined on steak and a red wine the next day he drove 420 kilometers
southeast to the town of blonde yak where he stayed in a hotel overnight he then drove 350 kilometers east to the
town of la Ponte and checked into a five-star Rim registering under the alias mr. Lujan Xavier with his
profession listed as businessman he chatted openly and confidently with staff and tried flirting with the hotel
manager telling them he was in the area looking for professional contacts he ate
dinner at the hotel restaurant and used the computer at their in-house internet cafe to search for information about a
controversial Catholic institution called Opus Dei the next morning Xavier continued 160 kilometers
southeast to the Mediterranean coastal town of lust sense of Amer where he had lived briefly before his marriage to
Anne yes he spent the night in a low budget hotel before traveling onwards 91 kilometers
the town of rocket Bruin Suraj owns an hour from the Italian border he was familiar with the area having lived
there with his family for two years in the 90s there Xavier dressed in a dark long-sleeved sweater
light-colored pants and dark glasses was captured on CCTV using an ATM to withdraw 30 euros the maximum remaining
on his monthly withdrawal limit he checked into another budget hotel and at 8:40 p.m. emailed his friend Vincent
whom he had given ownership of his business websites a week earlier he claimed to the route to commerce shoe
business website had been infiltrated by a virus and the site had subsequently been deleted on Friday April 15 Xavier
checked out of the hotel and abandoned his Citroen c5 in the car as he exited the establishment wearing a
backpack into carrying a duffel bag he turned him to looked directly towards a CCTV camera located at the front of the
building investigators interpreted this look as one of defiance or some sort of a
goodbye that evening the theft of a license plate from the parking lot where Xavier had to left his car was reported
to police from that point onwards the trail went cold the town itself was home to several small chapels leading to the
possibility that Xavier had chosen the area for a religious pilgrimage police searched the wooded location 500
meters from the hotel covering an area of 25 square kilometers but no trace of Xavier was found unsubstantiated
sightings placed him in the coastal city of nice near the Italian border driving
a sedan with Paris license plates some witnesses claimed he was alone while others put him in the company of a
blonde woman media speculated over the identity of Xavier's alleged female companion and drew a connection to a
missing woman named Colette the Rome the 50 year-old disappeared from her home in
the town of log 30 kilometers west of Raqqa burn Siraj owns the same day Xavier was last sighted Xavier and
aeneas had lived in log for a while in the early nineties and their home had been just 500 meters from Colette's
reporters wondered if Xavier and Colette had known each other previously and were
hiding together but investigators were certain there was no connection and were proven correct when Colette was aunt
deceased and her sister-in-law and sister and lost son were charged with her murder
Serbia's motive to kill his entire family was theorized to have been a blend of personal and professional
issues in his life with his father's death in January 2011 acting as the catalyst yet such crimes were usually
triggered by upcoming events rather than ones that occurred in the past psychiatrists concluded savvier was a
narcissist who couldn't bear to sully the DuPont Allegan s name with financial or marital failures the crime appeared
to be a classic case of family annihilation also known as familicide according to criminologist professor
David Wilson male family annihilators act for one of four reasons to enact revenge on the mother to punish the
family for not living up to his ideals to protect the family from what he perceives to be an external threat or
because he fused the family as a status symbol that no longer serves this function upon his own economic failure
speaking about his research to Wired magazine professor Wilson said what's interesting and different about this
category of murderer his family annihilators were overwhelmingly not known to criminal justice or mental
health services for all intents and purposes these were loving husbands and good fathers often holding down
high-profile jobs and seen publicly as being very very successful they were simply not on the radar
on Tuesday May 10 an international arrest warrant was issued meaning French officials would have the right to indict
up the air and put him on trial even in absentia by May 12 approximately 330 calls had come in from the public
reporting possible sightings of zappy air throughout France Italy and as far away as Austria though none proved
credible there were deliberations the fugitive was being harbored by a family member
yet search warrants came up empty as did inquiries into a former business associate of xavius who helped his
clients obtain anonymous bank cards that could be used worldwide without leaving
a trace it was speculated that Xavier may have employed these services to create a new identity and disappear but
investigators uncovered no evidence to support this theory Serbia has links to a prayer group his
mother founded called Philadelphia were also explored zapier had reportedly been
involved with the group which had been accused of being sectarian and cult-like in the past and some suspected the group
who may be assisting him investigators visited group members seizing computers hard drives and mobile phone records but
failed to uncover any direct links to their suspect as Xavier remained completely hidden over the following
months speculation arose that he may have entered his own life shortly after carrying out the murders the public
prosecutors believed this was the most likely outcome but many disagreed arguing that he wouldn't have gone to
such extreme lengths to plot his escape if he intended to take his own life Xavier's computer had been wiped clean
but the French cyber police were able to retrieve data stored on an external server hosted by the family's internet
provider they recovered hundreds of emails photos and texts dated between 2006 and 2010 there were emails
addressed to Catherine xavius former lover and several other women indicating he had participated in other
Affairs he maintained his habit of borrowing money from them while making false promises about the future at one
stage he wrote about his wife's affair quote I was lucky to offend a woman emotionally and sexually faithful I was
naive and confident gullible realizing after 15 years of marriage that it was not so that she had physical desires of
other men was the greatest personal disappointment imaginable throughout 2010 Xavier made hundreds of posts under
multiple usernames to an online forum titled seat catholique org in which he questioned God and his faith around a
year before the murders he started a thread titled necessity of sacrifices and participated in a heated debate with
other users he said the concept of sacrifice bloody or not human or animal is intrinsically
linked to all religions and especially ours in May that year he wrote 99% of the people who killed another human
being did it but finding it perfectly normal and justified investigators contacted the site's forum moderator who
revealed that Xavier had been banned several times for quote systematically deflecting all the topics he was
involved in whenever Xavier was banned he would create a new account and re-engage the
community in another recovered file user Pierre had written I think I've got a superiority complex you could call it
that but it's based on a simple observation I belong to a group of people who are intelligent determined
balanced and in good moral and physical health such people are rare compared to the masses his wife was also active on
online forums and in 2004 and yes regularly participated in one based around a psychology in one post she
wrote I already put many messages on this forum but I changed my nickname for fear that my husband recognizes me I
have worries about my relationship because I have a husband who is very old-fashioned in his way of being in the
family the father is the leader he gives an order we execute with our seeing to question or understand he plays his role
of head of the family of a husband who must bring back his Christ but he's neither tender nor huggable nor
attentive add to that big money worries and you will imagine the atmosphere several days later she wrote of lacking
everything including tenderness love mutual friends and sex quote he hates being made to understand that his
behavior does not please he feels attacked and humiliated belittled and yes also confessed to feeling attracted
to other men and having virtual affairs she noted that her husband had once told
her quote if we all die at once then everything would be over in the months leading up to the murders
Xavier had been in contact with several ex-girlfriends including one from Germany named Claudia the pair had
originally met in Paris in the early 1980s and were close to getting married until xàbia broke things off due to
religious differences as they had stayed in touch over the years investigators questioned whether she might have
information regarding his whereabouts Claudia became one of their strongest bleeds
however efforts to track her down were difficult as authorities didn't know her surname a friend who had accompanied
Xavier on a trip to Germany in 1983 said Claudia's apartment was located in the city of Hannover and police aimed to
launch a public appeal in February 2013 to identify and locate her but abandoned
the plan last-minute amid privacy concerns in April 2013 exam Pierre's brother-in-law Bertram tracked
down a vital email exchange between Sofia and Claudia that enabled two German officials to successfully locate
her nan to police traveled to Munich to question her though the result was anticlimactic she hadn't spoken to
Zambia recently and couldn't provide any information to further assist with the search on April 9 2013
as the two-year anniversary of the murders approached investigators conducted a large-scale search of
mountain ranges located 61 km/h stub the town where Xavier was last seen the area
featured old steep and difficult to access led mines that had been used to conceal the bodies
of murder victims in the past acting on the possibility that Xavier had taken his life in this remote area cave divers
searched to the old mines but found no sign of him they returned several weeks later on May 2
focusing on a two hectare area of woodlands that contained mines cavities wells and caves but once again uncovered
nothing of value close to two months later the body of a heavily decomposed man was found hanging from a tree in a
wooded area 20 kilometres from exactly as last known whereabouts anticipation that the body was that of Xavier du Pont
de la jeunesse was quickly dismissed by DNA testing despite the overwhelming evidence to suggest otherwise he's
Abby's mother Genevieve and sister Christine refused to believe he was guilty and were convinced of his story
about working undercover for the DEA they believed that the murders were part of a conspiracy who orchestrated by
United States officials to cover-up the family's admission into witness protection they based their theory on
the belief that the bodies found under the DuPont the Legion s home were not those of æneas Arthur
Thomas n and Benoit but decoys neither woman was given the opportunity to view the bodies which they believed had been
released for burial suspiciously quickly however in cases where heavy decomposition has occurred DNA testing
and dental records are used to save families from the trauma of viewing their loved ones disfigured remains is
Jahnavi event Christine also noted the heights and weights of the victims were out by a few centimeters on their
autopsy reports yet the bodies were buried more than two weeks before they were discovered meaning some level of
shrinkage was to be expected they pointed out xavius behavior was not akin to someone who had just carried out
a violent crime and was on the run from the police he made no attempt to hide his purchase of garbage bags lime cement
bullets or the silencer for his rifle following his escape Musa Pierre used his credit cards to pay
for hotels and allowed himself to be recorded on CCTV actions his family believed the murderer fleeing
authorities would never do they referred to the arthritis in his shoulder and his
recurring back problem to prove he wouldn't have been able to dig the mass grave under the terrace which required
moving two and a half cubic meters of solid earth in April 2012 one year after the murders Christine created a blog
titled another point of view on the DuPont the Legion s case in which she shared aspects of the case she found
questionable details about Xavier's character and what she regarded as evidence that supported her theory she
acknowledged that her family's findings were shocking but that they needed to be highlighted
to ensure exactly--i benefitted from the presumption of innocence in her blog Christine claimed that
Sevilla had sent an email to two of his friends less than a year before the murders saying that if an accident were
ever to befall his family quote I hope that even after a police investigation my parents brothers and sisters will
never be led to believe that I intentionally caused these accidents even if the evidence is strong he
reportedly asked his friends to store the email in a special folder in case it could help him out in the future
Christine also reported that around at the end of March 2011 an anxious and scared and yes told two friends from her
prayer group that someone had been making threats against her and Xavier Annius had allegedly changed her email
address and phone number with one friend claiming quote it seemed like she wanted
to cut the bridges with something or someone Christine was certain nanny s was complicit in the plan to leave and
that the text messages purportedly sent to friends from Thomas and Dan's mobile phones afterwards were written in a way
that was characteristic of their mother the blog also alleged that Annius sent friends an email post departure that
simply contained a photo of the Statue of Liberty xavius family retained a lawyer named Steven Goldstein to
represent their interests in a 2013 interview with Lapua magazine he said my position as a lawyer is not easy this
file is out of the ordinary and even if I do not share that this is alleged by my clients I can not dismiss any
hypothesis because in this file errors were made huge flaws remain we do not even know when the victims were killed
in reality there is no certainty in this case it that bodies were discovered at 55 Robert
Schuman Boulevard despite reports stating otherwise Goldstein claimed to the DNA tests had only established a
familial relationship between the victims but did not confirm there were members of the DuPont the leonesse
family he described the autopsy reports as negligent and said there was no way jabya could have dug the hole under the
terrace alone quote there is enough evidence in this file to tip the balance in favor of my clients assumptions I
searched the truth without assuming xavier dupont the Ligon SS guilt in this case it was assumed that zapier had
murdered his family before disappearing no other trail was explored [Music] the case remained open and as the months
and years passed with Xavier still missing armchairs Lutz gathered online to discuss the ongoing investigation and
the prime suspects possible whereabouts or outcome some speculated that Xavier had gone on the run not from law
enforcement but from another unknown threat relatives of the DuPont the Legionnaires family joined in on the
debates offering further insight into exactly as background some were willing to believe his sister's theory that the
family was still alive on Wednesday July 15 2015 just over four years after the murders
her paris-based to journalists working for the International News Agency our Jean's france-presse received an
envelope by post it contained a candid photograph of brothers arthur and benoit du Pont the leakiness sitting side by
side at a dining room table Arthur appeared to be mid conversation with someone on the other side of the
table while Benoit was eating a meal and looking down at his plate handwritten in
French on the back of the photo whether capitalized the words I am still alive underneath in smaller writing her read
from then until this time not July 11 2015 and was signed with the name Javier du Pont de la jeunesse debate
soared over whether the message was genuine or not the photo had never been published before yet Arthur and Benoit
appeared to be the same age in the image as they were at the time of their murder
members of Xavier's family dismissed it as a fake adamant that Xavier would reach out to them long before he
contacted the press additionally had seemed almost impossible that he would still be in not
a photojournalist from not thought he recognized the photo and went digging through his archives
he discovered that in 2011 he had seen the image during the silent march held in the wake of the murders and taken a
photo of it which he still had on file confirming that was not recent the photo and envelope were tested for DNA and
fingerprints while the handwriting was analyzed with police ultimately dismissing it as a
hoax over the years alleged sightings of xavier dupont the lagunas continued to be reported from far and wide including
one in central france on Monday October 17 2016 a man bearing a strong resemblance to Xavier caught the
attention of bystanders after fleeing a casino without claiming his winnings after reviewing CCTV footage
investigators deemed to the resemblance to be so remarkable that the sighting seemed too reliable a spokesperson told
the media this is a highly sensitive affair and we are doing all we can to verify the likeness we fully intend to
bring this man to justice a manhunt was launched and the individual was located who turned out to
be no more than a look-alike 14 months later police received the tip-off that Xavier was seeking refuge in an isolated
monastery in Raqqa Brune sera Jones that served as a place of worship for a reclusive Order of Catholic monks given
its proximity to the location where Xavier was last seen it had already been searched in 2011 but no sign of the
fugitive was uncovered in 2018 two worshipers recognized one of the monks who regularly served Mass as bearing a
resemblance to Xavier during morning Mass on Tuesday January 9 2008 een two plain clothes detectives entered the
chapel where four monks including the one suspected to be Xavier were giving the Holy Sacrament to four worshippers
the one purported to be Xavier was identified as 53 year old brother who's younger a Joseph who was oblivious to
the fact he'd been pinned as the wanted mass murderer brother Joseph had been living at the monastery for many years
including when the murders took place he later told a French News Network that while he could accept that his age and
higher correspondent with Xavier's the two born no other resemblances he found it hard to conceive that a monastery
could be suspected of hiding a mass murderer and said that if Xavier had approached he would have told him to
surrender the DuPont the Ligon s house on Robert Schuman Boulevard remained under the
seal of the judicial police until 2012 in 2014 it was renovated repainted and put on the market
where it's at for over a year in January of 2015 have finally sold to a couple for less than half of the original
asking price as of late 2019 the case is still open and will remain so as long as
the examining magistrate deems necessary over the years there have been over 900
reported sightings of the suspect but none have ever been confirmed 58 year-old xavier dupont Iligan s is said
to be one of the most wanted men in france however as Kristine highlighted on her
blog her brother does not appear on Interpol's list of wanted persons Christine's blog is no longer active
she made her final post on May 13 2013 saying she had shared all the available information and it had served its
purpose she explained to those who knew Savior and yes Arthur Thomas and aunt Benoit
DuPont the Liga ness personally would inevitably always share a different perspective from the public reiterating
her belief that the family's disappearance was not criminal but part of a classified case the blog refers to
a famous quote from Mahatma Gandhi which says an era does not become truth by a reason of multiplied propagation
nor does truth become error because nobody sees it the theory that Xavier took his own life following the murders
remains prevalent some argue this would have gone against his religious beliefs her suicide is considered a mortal sin
in Catholicism but according to the book the DuPont the lagunes case by journalist guy hoon yet Xavier had
become disillusioned with his faith and had debated with family members in the past about the moral issues surrounding
suicide it didn't pose a problem to Xavier who argued that everyone has the right to end their own life some believe
he had been planning the murder suicide for several months to escape his mounting financial problems and had gone
to great lengths to cover it up because he didn't want to be identified as someone who would kill his own family in
2016 his Janvrin a person ik the former head of non judicial police said we work
on facts not impressions without proof of death the only method that is worth considering is living
if zabi s corpse is discovered authorities have confirmed he will be presumed guilty and the case will be
closed on Friday October 11 2009 teen as the case ball team was preparing this episode the following news made
headlines across the world airport staff had the Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris contacted authorities after a man
boarded a flight to Scotland using a stolen French passport the passenger was arrested without incident upon his
arrival to the city of Glasgow hours later news reports announced that fingerprint analysis had confirmed the
man to be Xavier du Pont de Legionnaires who had undergone drastic plastic surgery to change his facial features
news of the arrests quickly made worldwide headlines but in the early hours of Sunday October 13 it was
announced that UK authorities had made a mistake the man was actually 69 year old
Portuguese national guys o el who board no physical resemblance to Zambia and was not connected to the case in any way
God was released after spending a night in custody with reports stating he and his family were very distressed by the
incident French officials have placed the blame for the error on Scottish police who claimed they were simply
acting under instructions from the French authorities the true whereabouts of Xavier DuPont the Legionnaires remain
unknown [Music] you

Case 129: The Dupont de Ligonnès Family

The six-member Dupont de Ligonnès family lived at 55 Robert-Schuman Boulevard, a narrow two-story residence in a wealthy residential area west of the city. Their home was part of a row of matching terraced buildings overlooking a busy thoroughfare, interspersed with patisseries, bars, and other businesses...

CREDITS

Narration – Anonymous Host Research – Erin Munro Writing – Elsha McGill Creative direction – Milly Raso Production, scoring – Mike Migas and Andrew Joslyn A special thank you to Holly Evans Plumelet and Sylvain Plumelet for their assistance with this episode.

SOCIAL LINKS

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RESOURCES

For all credits and sources please visit https://casefilepodcast.com/case-129-the-dupont-de-ligonnes-family

Brief Summary

The DuPont de Ligon family vanished, leading to a shocking murder investigation implicating patriarch Xavier, who remains missing.

Key points

Luke Bel Air Wine. Discover award-winning French bubbly crafted with tradition and taste.
The DuPont Family's Sudden Departure. A mysterious letter reveals the DuPont family's urgent move to the U.S.
Witness Protection Program. Xavier DuPont de Ligonnès reveals his undercover work and the family's new identities.
Silent March for the DuPont Family. Several hundred people gathered to honor the DuPont family in a silent march.
Funeral Service for the DuPont Family. A funeral service was held with hundreds of mourners, broadcasting to those outside.
Xavier's Mysterious Disappearance. Xavier checks into various hotels and uses aliases while on the run.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

Everything has gone according to plan... until now.

10:08WatchNov 2, 2019

Tension

85/ 100High tension

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