Overview
- A Paris assize court on Oct. 24 sentenced Dahbia Benkired, 27, to life imprisonment without the possibility of early release for the 2022 rape, torture and murder of 12-year-old Lola Daviet.
- She becomes the first woman in France to receive an irreducible life sentence, which carries a security period of at least 30 years before any review.
- CCTV and forensic evidence showed Benkired lured the girl into a flat in the family’s building, assaulted her, caused death by asphyxiation and later moved the body in a trunk.
- Court-appointed psychiatrists reported psychopathic traits and no curable mental illness; Benkired apologized in court, and her lawyer said a decision on appeal has not been made.
- The verdict drew protesters outside the courthouse and renewed political focus on immigration enforcement, as records showed Benkired had ignored an expulsion order two months before the killing, while the family said the ruling restored truth but cannot bring back their child.