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French police arrest German accused of holding wife captive

August 7, 2023

The 55-year-old man is suspected of torturing his wife at their home in the French town of Forbach, near Germany. The woman alerted authorities, saying she had been trapped by her husband since 2011.

https://p.dw.com/p/4Urqc
A camera man films the building in Forbach where the woman was believed to have been taken captive for over a decade
French police are investigating the captive situation, which is believed to have lasted more than a decadeImage: Beckerbredel/dpa/picture alliance

French police on Monday said they had arrested a German national after his wife was discovered following 12 years of captivity in the couple's home in Forbach, eastern France.

The small town is close to the German border and Saarbrücken, the capital of the state of Saarland.

A police source told AFP news agency that the woman, also German, was found naked with her head shaved in a bedroom that was closed off with metal wire.

She had probably been tortured and had multiple injuries. The woman was taken to a hospital with fractures in both legs, and her fingers.

A street in Forbach in eastern France
The crime in the French town of Forbach near the German border has been brought to the attention of authorities in both countriesImage: Nicolas Rung/IMAGO

How was the woman found?

The police source said the 53-year-old woman had managed to call police in Germany over the weekend, who in turn alerted their French colleagues. The woman said she had been held and abused by her husband since 2011.

French broadcaster BFMTV said that the 55-year-old man is accused of kidnapping, aggravated rape, and acts of torture and barbarism. He is held in the eastern French city of Metz.

The investigations are ongoing. French-Monegasque station RMC said police found a diary-like notebook in the apartment, which the man is believed to have used to record his actions and the times he gave his wife food.

dh/wd (AFP, dpa)