Dominique Cottrez

Dominique Cottrez is a French woman who admitted killing 8 of her newborn infants.[1][2]

Dominique Cottrez
Born
Dominique Cottrez

Villers-au-Tertre, Nord Department, France
Conviction(s)Murder, Infanticide
Criminal penalty9 years imprisonment
Details
Victims8
Span of crimes
1989–2006
CountryFrance
Date apprehended
July 2010

Murders

Cottrez committed the murders during an approximately 17-year period between 1989 and 2006. She suffocated eight of her children shortly after giving birth. Cottrez was able to conceal her pregnancies from her husband and doctor due to her weight. She buried the bodies in gardens at her home and her parents' home.[3]

In July 2010, two of the bodies were discovered in plastic bags by new owners working in the garden of a house Dominique and her husband, Pierre-Marie Cottrez, previously occupied.[4] When police contacted the Cottrez family to question them about the discoveries, Dominique immediately admitted that the bodies belonged to two infants she had given birth to.[5] She also told police that six more infants' bodies were hidden in the garage.

Trial

French prosecutors announced on July 29, 2010 that Dominique had been indicted on murder charges.[6] Her husband was questioned by a judge but has not been charged at this time.[7] Prosecutors believe he may have been unaware of the infants because Dominique's obesity concealed the pregnancies.

In August 2012, Dominique was released by an appeals court in the town of Douai on condition that she continue to receive psychological and psychiatric care.[8]

On July 2, 2015 Dominique was found guilty and sentenced to nine years in prison on eight counts of infanticide.[9]

Dominique and Pierre-Marie Cottrez are also the parents of two adult daughters.[10]

See also

References
  1. Carrol, Linda (15 April 2014). "How Could She? Mother Accused in Deaths of Infants". NBC News. Retrieved 10 November 2017.
  2. "French Woman Dominique Cottrez Admits to Suffocating 8 Newborns, Says Prosecutor". CBS News.
  3. "France baby deaths trial of Dominique Cottrez opens". BBC News. 25 June 2015. Retrieved 19 August 2022.
  4. Crumley, Bruce (29 July 2010). "Why Are French Women Killing Their Babies?". Time. Paris. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
  5. "Details emerge in French baby killing case". BBC News. 29 July 2010. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
  6. "Woman charged in France over babies' bodies". CNN.com. Retrieved 2022-06-11.
  7. "Woman Confesses to Killing Her 8 Babies". ABC News.
  8. "French infanticide woman freed". BBC News. 2012-08-02.
  9. "" Il faut accepter de ne pas tout comprendre " de Dominique Cottrez". Le Monde.fr. 2015-07-02.
  10. Sparks, Ian (7 November 2014). "Mum who 'killed 8 of her newborn babies' to stand trial". The Daily Mirror. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
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