President Macron says trust in France’s institutions is at stake after judicial handling of a suspect in an 11-year-old girl’s suspected killing sparked a political crisis.
PARIS: President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday said he feared for trust in France’s institutions after the judicial authorities’ handling of a suspect in an 11-year-old girl’s likely killing triggered a political crisis.
The body of the girl, named as Lyhanna, was found last week after she went missing on May 29 in the southwestern town of Fleurance.
The main suspect, the 41-year-old father of a school friend of the victim, had twice before been formally accused of raping a child, but investigations had been dropped or had stalled.
“It is trust in our institutions that is at stake,” Macron told a cabinet meeting, according to government spokeswoman Maud Bregeon.
But he also called for calm after nationwide outrage over alleged judicial failings in dealing with cases of sexual abuse of children, adding: “We do not respond to a tragedy with shouting.”
Around 60,000 people protested across the country on Monday evening, some demanding the resignation of Justice Minister Gerald Darmanin.
He has refused to step down, after apologising for what he called a “huge failure” in the case.
Authorities have not yet announced the results of a forensic examination of the girl’s body or charged the suspect.
Most recently, a woman filed a legal complaint against the accused in August last year, accusing him of repeatedly raping her daughter between September 2024 and May 2025.
The case was backed up by a medical report, according to the justice minister.
But police had not yet questioned him by the time Lyhanna went missing nine months later.
