Calais - A Polish man has confessed to raping and killing a nine-year-old girl after brazenly snatching her from a French playground within view of her mother, prosecutors said Thursday.
The country was left reeling from the crime in the northern city of Calais, where flags flew at half mast, as grisly details emerged about how the girl, Chloe, was kidnapped, raped and strangled in the space of an hour and a half.
The Pole, who has a long criminal history, confessed to the crime after being arrested on Wednesday night near the woods where the girl's naked, lifeless body was found.
Chloe was playing with a friend on Wednesday afternoon when she approached the man, who had stopped his car to drink a beer, and sprayed him with a water pistol, prosecutor Jean-Pierre Valensi said at a press conference on Thursday.
The suspect told investigators he grabbed the child and forced her into the red car, driving her to the nearby woods where he sexually assaulted and killed her.
Chloe's mother, who was present, burst into panicked screams as the man, described by witnesses as bald and wearing sunglasses, shoved her daughter into his car.
Police were alerted to the kidnapping at 3:30 pm and search teams were dispatched, one of which made the grisly discovery of the murdered child at 5pm.
Forensic investigators reported evidence of "strangulation and sexual violence", said Valensi.
Nearby, police found the red vehicle with Polish number plates, and the driver -- heavily under the influence of alcohol -- was arrested not far from the scene shortly thereafter.
The suspect "immediately admitted his involvement in the child's death," said Valensi.
AFP
