Police charge suspect in French nurses’ murder

BORDEAUX, France, Feb 3 (AFP) – A 21-year-old former mental patient was on Thursday placed under formal investigation for the grisly murder of two nurses in a psychiatric hospital in southwestern France, his lawyer said.

Romain Dupuy, who investigators say has confessed to the crime, made no statement when he appeared before a judge in the town of Pau, where the hospital is located, according to his lawyer Gilbert Garreta.

Earlier this week, Dupuy was placed under judicial investigation, the step in the French court system that precedes the filing of formal charges, for attempted homicide for shooting at police who arrested him at the weekend.

On December 18, the bodies of the nurses were found in a blood-splattered room in the hospital. Chantal Klimaszewski, 48, had been decapitated and her head placed on a television set. Lucette Gariod, 40, had had her throat cut.

An autopsy determined that neither had been sexually assaulted.

Dupuy, who has a history of schizophrenia, had been linked to the crime via DNA testing. He had been admitted to the Pau hospital several times in the past.

Authorities all the way up to President Jacques Chirac have condemned the crime, calling it “unspeakable” and “barbaric”. They have vowed to step up security in hospitals.