A British journalist convicted in absentia by a Paris court for the 1996 murder of a French woman died on Sunday, his lawyer told Irish media.
Ian Bailey, who was sentenced to 25 years in prison for the death of Sophie Toscan du Plantier in 2019, has always maintained his innocence and was living in Ireland, where he has refused to be extradited.
Broadcaster RTE said Mr Bailey, 66, died on Sunday afternoon in Bantry, in southern Ireland, after an illness, adding that he was confirmed dead by his lawyer Frank Buttimer.
According to the Irish Times, Mr Bailey suffered two heart attacks last year.
The body of 39-year-old Toscan du Plantier, wife of film producer Daniel Toscan du Plantier, was discovered by a neighbor on December 23, 1996, outside a holiday home in south-west Ireland.
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She had been hit in the head with a concrete block and was wearing nightgowns.
Irish police immediately suspected Bailey, who was arrested in 1997 and rearrested in 1998, but was never prosecuted in Ireland due to lack of evidence.
But the Paris court ruled there was “sufficient evidence” linking Bailey to the crime.
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Multiple French extradition bids for Bailey have been rejected by Irish courts.
A documentary released in 2021 on the streaming platform Netflix brought the incident to the surface again.
mhc/giv/bc