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| French Alps shootings: experts hope bullet casings will lead to killer | French Alps shootings: experts hope bullet casings will lead to killer |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| French forensic and ballistic experts are to examine the 15 bullet casings found at the scene of the French Alpine murder of three British holidaymakers and a French cyclist to try to identify the killer's DNA and weapon. | French forensic and ballistic experts are to examine the 15 bullet casings found at the scene of the French Alpine murder of three British holidaymakers and a French cyclist to try to identify the killer's DNA and weapon. |
| Postmortem examinations will also be carried out on Friday on the four victims, three of whom were shot in the head with a semi-automatic pistol. The results are expected late on Friday or Saturday. | Postmortem examinations will also be carried out on Friday on the four victims, three of whom were shot in the head with a semi-automatic pistol. The results are expected late on Friday or Saturday. |
| Investigators at Annecy in the Haute Savoie region of France said the two children who survived the slaughter are at separate hospitals under protection in case the killer, or killers, returned to threaten the only witnesses to the shootings. | Investigators at Annecy in the Haute Savoie region of France said the two children who survived the slaughter are at separate hospitals under protection in case the killer, or killers, returned to threaten the only witnesses to the shootings. |
| The youngest girl, who lay terrified and traumatised undiscovered in the car for eight hours after the attack, was said to have spoken to detectives, who hope she may give some threads of information to help the inquiry. | The youngest girl, who lay terrified and traumatised undiscovered in the car for eight hours after the attack, was said to have spoken to detectives, who hope she may give some threads of information to help the inquiry. |
| Iraqi-born businessman Said al-Hilli, 50, from Claygate in Surrey, was found slumped in the driver's seat of his BMW estate car at a beauty spot in the French Alps on Wednesday. His wife, Iqbal, 47, and 77-year-old mother-in-law were dead in the back of the car. | Iraqi-born businessman Said al-Hilli, 50, from Claygate in Surrey, was found slumped in the driver's seat of his BMW estate car at a beauty spot in the French Alps on Wednesday. His wife, Iqbal, 47, and 77-year-old mother-in-law were dead in the back of the car. |
| The couple's elder daughter, Zainab, seven, had been shot in the shoulder, violently beaten around the head and left for dead while her sister, Zeena, four, escaped injury and remained hidden under the bodies of her mother and grandmother. Zainab was said to be in a serious but stable condition at a hospital in Grenoble. | The couple's elder daughter, Zainab, seven, had been shot in the shoulder, violently beaten around the head and left for dead while her sister, Zeena, four, escaped injury and remained hidden under the bodies of her mother and grandmother. Zainab was said to be in a serious but stable condition at a hospital in Grenoble. |
| A French man who appears to have cycled past during the killings was fatally shot in the head. | A French man who appears to have cycled past during the killings was fatally shot in the head. |
| Detectives have admitted they have many theories but no leads in the killings. Between 60 and 100 investigators are working on the case, described by the local prosecutor, Eric Maillaud, as "extremely savage". He urged journalists to let investigators "do their job". | Detectives have admitted they have many theories but no leads in the killings. Between 60 and 100 investigators are working on the case, described by the local prosecutor, Eric Maillaud, as "extremely savage". He urged journalists to let investigators "do their job". |
| Friday's tests were expected to reveal whether there was more than one killer and if the victims were killed with the same weapon. | Friday's tests were expected to reveal whether there was more than one killer and if the victims were killed with the same weapon. |
| The local newspaper, Le Dauphiné Libéré, reported the murders as "a massacre, a miracle and a mystery". | The local newspaper, Le Dauphiné Libéré, reported the murders as "a massacre, a miracle and a mystery". |
| A member of the Institut de Recherche Criminelle de la Gendarmerie Nationale (National Gendarmerie Institute for Criminal Research) told the paper: "It appears to be an execution." | A member of the Institut de Recherche Criminelle de la Gendarmerie Nationale (National Gendarmerie Institute for Criminal Research) told the paper: "It appears to be an execution." |