Two years after his wife's death in Anjomakely, a French national tried by the Criminal Court has been acquitted for lack of evidence. A sexagenarian Frenchman, prosecuted for the alleged murder of his Malagasy wife, was acquitted yesterday on the benefit of the doubt by the ordinary Criminal Court, following a hearing held in courtroom 4 of the Anosy tribunal. The facts date back to August 10, 2024, in Anjomakely, in the commune of Bongatsara, where the 31-year-old woman was found dead at their home.
During the trial, the accused, dressed in a black sweater and jeans, denied any involvement. He explained that a burglary had occurred that evening and that he had discovered his wife wounded and motionless on the sofa. He claimed to have then alerted neighbors and the fokontany chief. According to his statements, his wife suffered from health problems and he was unaware of the exact cause of her death.
Three witnesses were listed in the file, including the fokontany chief and two neighbors, but none were present at the hearing. All had stated they had never witnessed violence or major conflicts within the couple, who had been civilly married since 2013. The autopsy report noted a thigh wound but did not specify the cause of death.
The public prosecutor, represented by the attorney general, acknowledged the uncertainties surrounding the facts and deferred to the Court's judgment. The defense emphasized the absence of direct evidence linking the accused to his wife's death. The Court ultimately pronounced his acquittal.
Leaving the courtroom, the Frenchman, visibly moved, was embraced by two women who came to support him. The initial report from the Andoharanofotsy gendarmerie had noted serious suspicions: on the evening of the tragedy, law enforcement found the man intoxicated while disturbing the neighborhood. He had stated his wife was wounded, but gendarmes discovered the lifeless body of the young woman, who bore a thigh wound potentially caused by a sharp weapon and was lying in blood.
Since only the two spouses were in the house, suspicion fell on the husband. Held in preventive detention at Tsiafahy, he was ultimately released after nearly two years of proceedings due to insufficient evidence.