French police arrested a 33-year-old man on Monday as the alleged perpetrator of the murder of his wife and four young children, whose bodies were found last night in an apartment in Meaux, a town in the Paris region. The victims, the 35-year-old mother and four children between 9 months and 10 years old, were found on Monday night after some neighbors notified the police because they could not communicate with the family.
The apartment where the family lived “did not show signs of violent entry and the father of the family was absent,” the Meaux Prosecutor’s Office said in a statement issued in the early hours of the morning.
The man was arrested this morning at his father’s home, in Sevran Saint Denis, about thirty kilometers away, the prosecutor’s office added several hours later.
The detainee had a history of psychological problems and in 2019 he had already attacked his wife with a knife, although the case was closed due to his illness.
The authorities have opened a formal investigation for “voluntary homicide with premeditation” and the suspect remains in custody, after a first expert examination has concluded that he is mentally fit to undergo the procedures, reports BFM TV.