First picture of suspect accused of gunning down Brit girl, 11, at family BBQ
This is the elderly gunman suspected of shooting dead a British schoolgirl during a family barbecue in northern France yesterday.
Dirk Raats, 71, used both a rifle and revolver as his aim fell on Solaine Thornton, 11, and her parents Adrian and Rachael Thornton, 52 and 49, who were seriously injured in the attack.
Their younger daughter, eight-year-old Celeste, escaped unharmed and fled, raising the alarm and calling armed officers to the home in the Brittany hamlet of Saint-Herbot, which is across the Channel from Plymouth.
Raats faces the age-specific charge of murdering a child 15 or under, along with three "attempted murder" charges.
On conviction, the 71-year-old pensioner would spend the rest of his life inside.
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Quimper Prosecutor Carine Halley has revealed that tests performed after arrest showed he was intoxicated on drugs at the time of the killing, with some outlets specifying that he had smoked cannabis.
Another official from the prosecutor's office, Camille Miansoni, added that the Dutch national was not aiming at the child when he fired the gun.
Raats and the Thorntons had a long-running dispute over neighbour privacy concerns (Nicholas Razzell)He said: "It would seem that he was not aiming at the little girl."
Raats appeared at the Brest Criminal Court on Monday evening, where he seemed to be in a trance as he said in broken French: "It's so horrible what happened – I don't understand it."
Raats partner Marlene van Hook was taken into custody and suspected of two counts of concealing a weapon.
This was not the first gun-related incident between the neighbours, and just three years ago rifle-wielding Raats allegedly pointed his firearm at the British family.
Raats was said to be furious that the Thorntons, who are originally from the Manchester area, had cleared the land of oak trees to install play equipment including swings.
Little Solaine, whose family is originally from Manchester, lived in Brittany (Facebook)
Solaine suffered fatal injuries when a bullet struck her (Facebook)Arguments first reached boiling point around three years ago, when Rats complained that his privacy was threatened, and so pointed a weapon at the Thorntons.
Marguerite Bleuzen, Mayor of Plonévez-du-Faou, which covers Saint-Herbot, confirmed there had been "some trouble with a neighbour dispute’ between the two families since at least 2020.
"I intervened with my deputies when we were elected," she said. "There was a problem with the land around their properties, and with noise pollution – it started from there."
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Following the official intervention three years ago, there had been "no emergency," but Ms Bleuzen was aware that arguments continued to simmer.
The home is now a crime scene (Thierry Creux/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock)"This morning, tongues are loosening," she said. "I think they all had a little trouble getting on with each other."
Ms Bleuzen added: "The family was well known and liked. There is a village fête every year and they always came.
"It’s incomprehensible to have shot a child. No one can understand how that could have happened."
Raats first threatened the family with a .22 hunting rifle as far back as 2020, according to neighbours in the hamlet.
One said: "That’s what the dispute three years ago was all about – police were called because he was threatening the family with his rifle.
"The two families were always arguing, and the rifle escalated matters, but nobody ever believed that he would use it."
The weapon was a licensed hunting rifle, and no effort was made to confiscate it by the police, or council officials.
Mr Thornton remained ‘critical with life-threatening wounds’ on Monday, while his wife was also in intensive care at the Cavale Blanche hospital in Brest, where they both underwent surgery.
A forensic officer at the crime scene (jeanmarcmorandini.com)All of the Thorntons were in the garden of their property – a converted sawmill – when shots were fired at around 9pm on Saturday.
The Thorntons had lived in the property – a converted sawmill close to Saint-Herbot chapel – for around five years.
Raats lived in a neighbouring converted schoolhouse with his wife.
Mr Thornton was well known around the hamlet and surrounding countryside for helping out with DIY tasks, while Mrs Thornton was a home help.
Celeste Thornton raised the alarm after seeing ‘all her family members shot in the head,’ said another investigating source.
She was with her sister on garden swings when the attack happened, while their parents were tending the barbecue.
Officers from the GIGN – the Gendarme National Intervention Group – arrived to support local police.
‘The shooter locked himself in his home after the shooting so there was a brief siege,’ said the source.
‘After some negotiation, the suspect gave himself up without a struggle, and he was arrested, alongside his wife. He had retired to Saint-Herbot around six years ago.’
Solenne Thornton was a pupil at Jean Jaurès College, in the town of Huelgoat.
Pupils at the school were receiving psychological care on Monday, as classes resumed as normal on Monday morning, with a ‘medical monitoring team’ in place.
Guylène Esnault, director of education services in the Finistere department, said: "This is a small area, and everyone knows each other. The children will have heard about what happened.
"The college principal will say what is appropriate to her students, and a monitoring team including a doctor, nurses and psychiatrists is in place."
Solenne was in Year 6 at the college, which has around 150 students.
Mael de Calan, president of Finister’s departmental council, said there was "Stupor and consternation after the murder of an 11-year-old schoolgirl in Plonévez-du-Faou.
"Such a drama, between neighbours, reminds us that the rise of violence in our society must be fought unanimously.
"I send all my condolences to the girl's family and loved ones, and my most sincere thoughts to the teachers and students of the Huelgoat college."
The UK Foreign Office said it aware of the shooting and "offering consulate assistance".
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