Gardaí have made a new appeal for information about the murder of Sophie Toscan du Plantier in West Cork in 1996.
Ms. du Plantier’s body was found at a laneway leading to her holiday home near Schull at 10 a.m. on December 23, 1996. No-one has ever been convicted of her murder.
She had bought the holiday home three years earlier.
On Monday, Superintendent Joe Moore of Bantry Garda Station told reporters: “I want to speak with any person who was in the Toormore area of County Cork between 20 December and 23 December 1996, in particular anyone who was driving on the R591 or R592.
“If you haven’t spoken to gardaí already, please make contact, we need to talk to you.”
He added: “Any person who has knowledge of this period of time must come to An Garda Síochána and let us know exactly what happened at the home and grounds where Sophie lived during those hours on those dates.
“I believe that there are still persons who have information on Sophie’s murder and who haven’t yet spoken to gardaí– or may have spoken to gardaí but were not in a position to tell everything that they know – I am appealing to those persons, 26 years later, to please come forward and speak to the investigation team.”
Superintendent Moore said Sophie’s family still live in France “and all of her siblings deserve to know what happened to their mother, daughter, wife, friend.
“Sophie has been denied the right to experience being a grandmother. Sophie deserves the truth behind her murder to be known.
“I appeal to people who have information relative to Sophie’s murder not to assume we know and/or that it has limited value. Let us make that decision. I cannot reiterate that enough.”
