The trial of Nordahl Lelandais for the murder Maëlys opens this January 31, 2022 for three weeks at the assizes of Isère. The victim’s parents are present in court but expect nothing from the man they describe as a “monster”. The personality of the accused and the suspicions of a sexual assault will be at the heart of the trial.
The essential
- The trial of Nordahl Lelandais opens this January 31, 2022, at 10 a.m., at the assizes of Isère. For three weeks the court will try to shed light on the case of little Maëlys.
- The former dog handler is accused of the murder preceded by the kidnapping and kidnapping of the eight-year-old girl. The facts date back to the night of August 26 to 27, 2017.
- The accused faces life imprisonment. He has already been sentenced to 20 years in prison for the murder of Corporal Arthur Noyer.
- Many gray areas surround the murder of little Maëlys, in particular the fact that she was sexually abused or not.
- The parents of Maëlys de Araujo wanted to be present at the trial of their child’s killer and hope to know the truth about the night of the tragedy, their daughter’s last words and also to remove the doubt that haunts them about a potential sexual assault.
Live
12:12 – The president recalls the alleged facts
The president began reading the report which summarizes the file and recalls the facts alleged against Nordahl Lelandais. The accused continues to stare at the president, he still has not looked at the portrait of Maëlys.
11:47 – Nordahl Lelandais also tried for the sexual assaults of his little cousins
During the trial, Nordahl Lelandais will also be tried for the sexual assault of two of his little cousins, aged 4 and 6 at the time of the events. Today, the children are 8 and 10 years old. Me Rémon, the lawyer who represents the little girls asked for the hearings of two little girls. A request rejected by the court.
11:40 a.m. – The court refuses the closed session
The court rejects the request for a closed session, so the trial will take place in the presence of the public and the press. The camera was also refused for the testimonies of the two little cousins of Nordahl Lelandais sexually assaulted by the accused. The lawyer for the civil parties and the defense supported the request for a closed session for these two hearings, scheduled for Friday and Monday, but the Advocate General considered that “the community has every interest in knowing everything that may carry harm to children”.
11:33 – The court orders the presence of Nordahl Lelandais’ ex-detainee
The court ordered that Nordahl Lelandais’ former prisoner, Farid C., be brought in by force. The man had claimed during the investigation that the accused had confided in him about the murder of Maëlys. Lelandais’ former cellmate has already refused to come.
11:28 – The parents of Maëlys heard at the bar of February 7
The parents of Maëlys, Jennifer Cleyet-Marrel and Joachim De Araujo will be heard at the bar on Monday February 7, if the trial is not delayed. The couple who were married on the day of Maëlys’ disappearance will testify the next day, reveals Le Progrès.
11:21 – Nordahl Lelandais’ mother and sister present
The sister and mother of Nordahl Lelandais are present to be heard on the personality of the accused. The lawyer considers that their testimonies are sufficient: “The testimony of the brother is not of age. I do not understand the absolute necessity of hearing it”. The president maintains the order to search for Sven Lelandais.
11:13 – Alain Jakubowicz justifies the absence of brother Lelandais
The defendant’s lawyer, Alain Jakubowicz explained that Sven Lelandais “sick, suffering from an orphan disease” and who “had all the trouble finding a job” as a seasonal worker in an altitude restaurant in a ski resort. skiing and that it is difficult for him to travel to testify. The explanation does not seem to be sufficient to exempt the brother of the accused from the hearing according to the president.
11:08 – The brother of the accused does not wish to speak before the race
The members of the Nordahl Lelandais family must be heard on the personality of the thirty-something. The brother of the accused, Sven Lelandais, wishes not to speak in court. A request rejected by the president who “orders that this witness be sought and appear, as planned, tomorrow afternoon”.
11:04 – Facing the portraits of Maëlys, the accused looks away
Since he entered the courtroom, Nordahl Lelandais has not laid eyes on the family of Maëlys and even less on the different portraits of the little girl. The accused looks only at the president.
10:58 – The examination of the personality of the accused conducted during the first three days of the trial
The personality of Nordahl Lelandais will be a central point of the trial, especially during the first three days during which the court will examine the character of the accused. Several ex-companions of the former dog handler will be heard to describe the personality of the 38-year-old man.
10:49 – People in court for the opening of the trial
Dozens of people went to the Grenoble court this morning, sometimes as early as four or six in the morning to attend the opening of the trial of Nordahl Lelandais. Some were provided with portraits of the young Maëlys.
10:42 – 4 men and 2 women among the jurors
The six jurors have been appointed, they are four men and two women. Six other people were appointed as additional jurors, again there are four men and two women.
10:36 – The trial is held more than four years after the Maëlys affair
The facts for which Nordahl Lelandais is on trial date back to the last weekend of August 2017. Maëlys’ parents have been waiting for more than four years for the case to be brought to justice. Just before entering the court, Joachim De Araujo indicated in a few words what he expected from the trial at the microphones of the journalists: “I hope that he stays in prison as long as possible so that we feel reassured let him be in jail.” As for the possible revelations of the accused, he “does not know[t] not if we can expect sincerity”.
10:26 – Second trial of Nordahl Lelandais
This is not the first time that Nordahl Lelandais has been in the dock. In May 2021, he appeared before the Savoy Assize Court for the murder of Corporal Arthur Noyer. The court sentenced him to 20 years in prison.
10:20 – The Maëlys affair eclipsed by the identity of Nordhal Lelandais?
Jennifer Cleyet-Marrel and Joachim De Araujo hope that during the trial there will be more talk of the Maëlys affair than of the Lelandais affair and that the identity of the accused will be eclipsed by the restoration of the truth about the Maëlys affair. and the tribute paid to the little girl.
Judged for the murder and kidnapping of little Maëlys, the former dog handler theoretically incurs life imprisonment. Although it is the heaviest sentence in France, it is always accompanied by a period of safety which can range from 18 to 22 years, that is to say that after 22 years behind bars the convicted person may apply for a reduction in sentence. An exception provided for by the law of February 1, 1994 makes it possible to pronounce incompressible life imprisonment with a period of safety which can extend over 30 years but Nordahl Lelandais does not risk being condemned to such a sentence. Only four cases justify the incompressible life sentence, in particular the murder of a minor under the age of 15 if it is accompanied by “rape, torture or acts of barbarism”. However, sexual assault is not a charge against Nordahl Lelandais, for lack of evidence. A decision of the judges that the lawyer for the Maëlys family regrets: “The judges could perhaps have been more daring and considered other qualifications, I am thinking in particular of qualifications linked to sexual abuse of the little girl. Maëlys. It was not their choice.
The final indictment of the Grenoble public prosecutor’s office concerning the case of little Maëlys was delivered on March 19, 2021. The prosecutor’s services had then ruled out premeditation to retain only the charges of murder, kidnapping and kidnapping of a minor under 15 years against Nordahl Lelandais. The abandonment of the aggravating circumstance of premeditation makes the trial for murder impossible. Premeditated murder is punishable by life imprisonment when murder is punishable by only thirty years in prison, as specified in articles 221-1 and 221-3 of the Penal Code. However, according to Me Rajon, “in law and taking into account the qualifications which were retained by the investigating judges, Nordahl Lelandais incurs a sentence of life imprisonment with a security period of 18 to 22 years, maximum security period of 22 years old”. Adding murder as a charge would therefore have had no impact on the sentence incurred by the accused.
The victim’s family does not give credit to Nordahl Lelandais’ statements. “I don’t believe in the accidental death of my daughter as he says. Nor in a simple night walk to see his dogs. At 3 am, you don’t take a child for a walk, an animal visit. He knew very well what he was going to do. It was premeditated,” said Joachim de Araujo, Maëlys’ father in an interview with Le Parisien. The devastated man does not expect the accused to tell the truth about the night of the tragedy. However, many gray areas still surround the death of Maëlys and the trial aims to shed light on this affair, in particular on “the question of a possible sexual motive” reports Me Rajon. Despite the doubts of the family and investigators, the charge of sexual assault was not retained because the autopsy carried out belatedly did not make it possible to determine whether the girl had been sexually abused. Nordahl Lelandais waited several months to reveal the location of the girl’s body, buried on a site in the Chartreuse massif, and therefore delayed the examinations necessary to find out the circumstances of Maëlys’ death. The suspicions concerning the sexual assault of the girl are reinforced by other accusations which relate to the former soldier and for which Nordahl Lelandais will also be tried before the Assizes of Grenoble: facts qualified as sexual assaults against two of his little cousins, aged 4 and 6 at the time of the events, and the possession of child pornography images.
With such charges, the personality of Nordahl Lelandais and his deviances will be at the heart of the trial. The psychiatrists who have appraised the former dog handler have already reported proven pedophile inclinations and a total absence of guilt. Reports that will be put into perspective with the discoveries of the investigators. Me Boguet notably informed France 3 about the Maëlys affair “that a few hours before presenting himself as a surprise guest at this wedding, Nordahl Lelandais consulted child pornography sites”. While Me Carole Rémond, the lawyer for the family of the little cousins of the thirties, says that the man filmed himself attacking the two children and specifies that “it is one of the components of sexual predators of in a general way”. As a defense argument, the accused had explained to the investigators that he no longer knew how to differentiate adult women from children under the influence of alcohol and cocaine. Despite the absence of tangible evidence, Maëlys’ father, Joachim de Araujo, is firmly convinced that his daughter has been abused and describes the attacker as “someone perverse, a pedophile”. And to add: “He kidnapped her to abuse her. For me, Lelandais is a monster”.