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France shootings: Saad al-Hilli named as victim France shootings: Three victims shot in head
(about 1 hour later)
A man shot dead in a UK-registered car in the French Alps with two women thought to be relatives was Saad al-Hilli, news agencies have said. Three of four victims of a shooting in a car in the French Alps were shot in the head, a French prosecutor has said.
Several agencies quote police sources as saying he is a 50-year-old man from Claygate, Surrey. One man, named by news agencies as Saad al-Hilli, from Surrey, an elderly woman and a French cyclist were shot in the head. Post-mortem examinations are being carried out.
A girl, four, was found unhurt in the car. An older girl, found shot outside the car, is in a critical condition. A British cyclist, an ex-RAF officer, discovered the scene near Lake Annecy.
He was killed along with two women thought to be his wife and the girls' grandmother. A cyclist was also killed. A second woman was also killed. A girl, four, hid in the car for eight hours before being found by police.
French police say they are shocked and baffled by the brutality of the shooting, in the middle of the afternoon, near the popular tourist destination of Lake Annecy, said the BBC's Imogen Foulkes. Annecy prosecutor Eric Maillaud said they were not looking for any more survivors.
The girl who was found away from the car - thought to be seven or eight years old - was shot three times and seriously injured. The younger daughter hid beneath her mother and was not even found until midnight, our correspondent added. "It was clearly an act of extreme savagery and it was obvious that who did this wanted to kill," he said.
The motive for the attack remains a mystery, he added.
Another girl, found shot outside the car, has been transferred to a hospital in the city of Grenoble where she has been placed in a medially-induced coma.
The girl - thought to be seven or eight years old - was shot three times, including in the shoulder, and had head fractures. "She suffered a violent attack," Mr Maillaud said.
News agencies quoted sources as saying the dead driver was a 50-year-old man from Claygate, Surrey.
Authorities have not confirmed this, saying only that they know who owns the car, and that the details matched the passport used to book a nearby campsite.
However, they could not match the driver's face with those details yet.
Mr Maillaud also said Swedish and Iraqi passports had been recovered.
Police said the British cyclist was cycling along a road and saw a BMW with the engine still running. He saw the older girl walking near the car, about to faint. He helped her into a recovery position, and called firefighters.
He then discovered the other cyclist, who had overtaken him earlier, dead on the road. He broke the driver's window of the car, and saw three bodies inside.
The younger daughter was concealed beneath her mother and was not even found until midnight.
She spent Wednesday night in a psychiatric hospital. Police said they had spoken briefly to her.
She was found "terrorised, motionless, in the midst of the bodies" after fellow campers at a nearby site told officers the family had two children, Mr Maillaud said.
In the UK, Surrey Police have said they are assisting the French authorities and liaising with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) following the shooting.In the UK, Surrey Police have said they are assisting the French authorities and liaising with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) following the shooting.
"This is an ongoing investigation being carried out by the French police and we are unable to confirm any details about the incident," they said in a statement. "This is an ongoing investigation being carried out by the French police and we are unable to confirm any details about the incident," the Surrey force said in a statement.
The younger girl was initially not spotted inside the BMW estate car, as local police waited for the arrival of forensic scientists from Paris.The younger girl was initially not spotted inside the BMW estate car, as local police waited for the arrival of forensic scientists from Paris.
It was not until 23:00 local time (21:00 GMT) that police found out from the family's neighbours at a nearby campsite that the family had a second daughter, and launched a search involving a helicopter and police dogs, one report said.It was not until 23:00 local time (21:00 GMT) that police found out from the family's neighbours at a nearby campsite that the family had a second daughter, and launched a search involving a helicopter and police dogs, one report said.
The head of the investigation, Benoit Vinneman, said there were several reasons why the girl was not found earlier, according to Le Parisien newspaper:The head of the investigation, Benoit Vinneman, said there were several reasons why the girl was not found earlier, according to Le Parisien newspaper:
  • Local police were told not to disturb the scene before the arrival of forensics
  • They did not want to compromise the ballistics investigation by opening the car doors because some of the windows had cracks made by the bullets
  • A helicopter with thermal imaging was also used, but did not detect the girl, who may have been concealed under the bodies
  • Local police were told not to disturb the scene before the arrival of forensics
  • They did not want to compromise the ballistics investigation by opening the car doors because some of the windows had cracks made by the bullets
  • A helicopter with thermal imaging was also used, but did not detect the girl, who may have been concealed under the bodies
Officials at the scene also tried to look through the car windows, but could not detect any movement.Officials at the scene also tried to look through the car windows, but could not detect any movement.
Some 15 spent cartridges from an automatic pistol were found at the crime scene.Some 15 spent cartridges from an automatic pistol were found at the crime scene.
Theories for the motive behind the brutal attack include an armed robbery gone wrong, a drug deal interrupted, even a family row, our correspondent said.
Prosecutor Eric Maillaud said the family was on a camping holiday on the edge of Lake Annecy in the Haute-Savoie region.
"Given what we see, it is certain that a criminal line of inquiry is to be number one," said the prosecutor.
Identity search
"After that, all theories are possible, it could also be in absolute a family drama, this is not excluded," Mr Maillaud added.
Mr Vinnemann said: "The three bodies found in the car appear to be the father, mother and grandmother.
"It is in any case a family, according to British people at the Saint-Jorioz camping site who reported their disappearance on Wednesday night," he added.
Mr Maillaud said the little girl, who spoke English, was found hiding under the legs of one of the women at about midnight local time (22:00 GMT).
He said the girl, who is being looked after by French authorities, was only found when special investigators reached the scene - long after police had sealed off the area.
"She was hidden under the bodies for some eight hours and didn't move for the whole time," he said.
He added: "The little girl spoke English. She had heard the noises, the cries, but she couldn't say more - she is only four years old."
The cyclist found shot dead nearby has been named by a local paper.
Another cyclist who came across the scene at about 16:00 local time (14:00 GMT) on Wednesday was said to be in shock.