PARIS' FIRST MURDER IN THE METRO Passionate Crime or Political Execution?
The Curious Lives & Enigmatic Double Victim-hood of Letitta Toureaux
The definitive answer to the decades old riddle of who murdered Toureaux still kinda-sorta’ hangs in the air. Toureaux was murdered during a period of widespread domestic and international upheaval, and amid deep fears over the very existence of France's 1930's government.
From the outset it was never a case of the usual suspects.…
The Event: May 16, 1937. Nighttime. A Parisian woman boards a first class carriage at the Porte de Charenton Metro stop. A minute or so later it departs, heading to the next stop of Porte Dorée. Once there Letitta Toureaux, a young widow, is found with a deep stab wound, a Laguiole knife stuck deeply in her neck. She dies on arrival at hospital. And, with her end begins the saga of the Metro Murder.
Source: https://criminocorpus.org/en/library/page/84485/#page (The whole story, in French).
Metro Sidebar: Metro Egalite? *Yes, Virginia, Paris had 1st class carriage service since its beginnings! It continued till 1991. In 1990 of the 120 million monthly passes sold, only 21,000 were for 1st class. (In truth, since 1982, any car could be used by anyone during rush hour).
Toureaux's murder is the first in the Paris Metro. For Police it is the start of a baffling case – one which despite herculean efforts to solve it, remained officially unsolved for 25 years. It was an enigmatic case set amid the kaleidoscopic social and political zeitgeist of 1930's France.
Over the years and despite numerous chronicling (web posts, books, small-screen depictions, etc.) an unequivocal final verdict has eluded daylight and will most likely continue to until declassification of the government's sealed files in 2038.(... And, why is that, you might well ask).
The Death of Letitta Toureaux: The Night in Question
Early evening, May 16: A group of passengers await a train at the Porte Doree Metro station.
It arrives and while entering the first class wagon they are shocked to see a woman in a black* dress and white hat with a knife embedded in her neck. She then tumbles over. The alarm is raised, the police arrive...she is rushed to Paris' Hopital Saint-Antoine. She dies on arrival. *(The victim's brother claims it was a green dress).
Despite almost two dozen investigations, more than 300 hundred people interviewed, 56 witnesses questioned and some 2,000 anonymous letters received about the crime, it remained an unsolved enigma. And still sorta’ does....
The Perfect Crime....? Until
Unsolved said Police, until an anonymous, richly detail-laden letter (see below) arrived at Police offices in June of 1962, a full quarter of a century after the unexplained murder. In it, a full explanatory confession with more than ample details about the murder. For some it removed all doubt.
But prior to the letter's arrival her case was considered inscrutable: How is someone murdered in a supposedly empty train car? Who did it? And, why? Meanwhile Police began examining Toureaux's personal life.
Who was Lætitia-Marie-Joséphine Toureaux (The Thicken Plots)
After reconstructing the crime time-line, the Police had no suspects, no clues ...zip. Her private life however revealed many an intriguing detail and surprising extra-circular activities.
Born to an Italian farmer who settled in France, she married Jules Toureaux in 1930. Jules then died from TB in 1935. She found work in a shoe wax company. Placed there, it seems by some branch of France’s intelligence service…(the thicken plots even more).
Police then learned Toureaux ran with and kept some colourful company. The young widow’s life apparently intersected with the murky realm of espionage, intrigue and involved some seemingly shady corners. She also worked for a private detective agency, and reportedly had 'various affairs' (two alleged lovers were military personnel based in strategic areas; one at the famed Maginot Line, and another at the Toulon port).
She also frequented the Guinguettes of the Bastille district. Under an alias Toureaux worked as a 'hat-check' in what was called a 'seedy' dance hall, the Ace of Hearts, in a equally seedy part of Paris. It was also where one could 'buy a token, and get a dance'. Strain your eyes a bit and you can almost see the smoke-filled club, smell the lingering tobacco and hear the band… Pretty easy to picture this as an ideal venue for the surreptitious dropping off of letters, and having clandestine tête-à-têtes with folks preferring low lighting and even lower profiles….you get the drift. Toureaux supposedly carried out investigations and did 'shadow' work for a private detective, one M. Rouffignac (whose instructions to Toureaux seem to have originated from some secret corner of the intelligence’ community).
Questioned by police, Rouffignac claimed Toureaux's work never placed her in any jeopardy. (…of course he said that!) Police also discovered Toureaux's job at that shoe wax company had been arranged by the intelligence service. She was a member of La Ligue Républicaine du Bien Public, whose aim was to 'promote human dignity and fight against misery' and it seems, fascism. She was also reported to have regularly visited the Italian Embassy (though Police say she held no fascist sympathies). If all this reported activity is/was true, Toureaux was one very active individual.
My 3-centimes take: Toureaux was either a superlative undercover intelligence operative well versed in The Game or an earnest amateur who drifted into the deep end of the intrigue pool where her efforts may have resulted in an avenging death. Or, she was the victim of a jilted would-be lover.
The Ongoing Fascination & ‘Mystery’ of the Impossible Murder (Let’s go back)
As part of its investigation Police interviewed train-riders in the Metro’s 2nd class wagon (the 1st being ‘empty’ …aside from the victim) who reported seeing no-one nor anything. Those waiting to enter the first class wagon were also interviewed. A huge part of this 'mystery' seems to hang on some Houdini-esque premise that Toureaux was found alone in an empty train wagon.
The witnesses statements (or what a lawyer friend labels 'eye-witless' accounts) claiming they saw nothing may be right. However not seeing anyone or thing isn't tantamount to its absence. Clearly someone could have been in the wagon, exited unseen and spirited off in the mayhem, or ….
Barring this, we're talking high-octane, jaw-dropping stunts of the Tom Cruise variety…. (...a perfectly-timed passing train...an assassin fused to the side of a hurtling train…then, the glint from a precisely hurled blade through a moving window...coming from the other direction…. Come to think about it, even Mr. Cruise would find that stunt Risky Business.
More likely and understandable is that the witnesses simply failed to notice anyone present in the 1st class wagon, and/or who, after stabbing the victim quickly slipped into the 2nd class wagon, unseen. (Exactly as described in the later confession letter). This is a far more likely scenario especially when we read that the police first on the scene neglected to detain passengers or record all the names. They were allowed to leave. And among them, possibly, the murderer. (Can’t fault the police, this was 90 years before Dick Wolf and the 1990 premier of Law & Order)…..
Background to the Toureaux Murder: 1930's France & The Third Republic
The Third Republic is being racked and roiled by ongoing jarring financial, social and political upheavals within which varied groups, – encompassing virtually every hue on the sociopolitical spectrum, are all aggressively jockeying for advantage. There is political instability, violence, social mayhem, plus widespread anxiety with dashes of upheaval liberally sprinkled in. Oh, and did I mention the looming threat of a (world) war?
This was the setting, more or less, when Letitta Toureaux was murdered, and which made her a double victim. (First came her murder and then, amid social upheaval and the scrambling about of the first political pawns in what rapidly became WWII, the sealing of the investigation into her death. Back-burnerded. Buried.)
The Toureaux Murder in Historical Context: Late 1930's France
It's the late 1930’s and along France's south-eastern border Italian fascist leader Il Duce is well into his his fascist rule. (1922-1943). Il Duce was adored by many in France.
On France’s southern border, the situation in Spain had deteriorated abysmally, leading to the 1936 Guerra Civil Española, the Spanish Civil. (1936 - 39).
Along her eastern border, —and far too close for comfort, was France's historical nemesis, the ever-threatening Germany, still smarting from that WWI shellacking. Since the arrival of Herr Hitler et compagnie in ‘33 it been pit-bulling, gobbling up, or threatening to, disputed or neutral territories and peoples. Das ist nicht gut!
Internally France is being pilloried by all manner of strife, with social and political order a precarious commodity. Many fear the growing inroads being made by fascism and communism. Any number of political factions are active – to mention but a few ...we have Action Française / Front Populaire, along with the Croix-de-Feu, (the latter originally subsidized by the wealthy perfumer Francois Coty) and, La Cagoule, the French far-right organization. More on La Cagoule, soon!
For a still vibrant and pulsating look at the times, see Will Shirer's The Collapse of the Third Republic. Still a fascinating read. Or, find it here on You-Tube!
The 1934 February Crisis/Insurrection
One griping event well sums up the times: The 1934 February Crisis/Insurrection which climaxed at Place de la Concorde. These were not France’s salad days: It had had seven Cabinets since January 1931, the global economic depression was slamming people hard, and there was the odious rising tides of xenophobia and antisemitism.
The crisis was partly due to an endless string of shocking political and financial scandals involving elected officials and reeking of favoritism and political nepotism. The Stavisky Affair was a sort of last straw – the latter was a larger-than life habitual con artist protected by high-powered political connections. Stavisky had bilked countless investors, selling fraudulent bank bonds, for untold gazillions before fleeing and then,….being ‘suicided’.
On the night of 6 Feb, 1934 a crisis unfolded when a riotous mob comprising, among others, far-right groups along with some nationalist veteran groups, (even some leftists) plus a series of leaders of varied stripes, all gathered and threatened to enter the French National Assembly.
The Republic Strikes Back & Persists
Pro-republic forces held the day however but the result was 26 were dead and 1,500 wounded (estimates vary). Though not deemed an insurrection then, post-war investigations show a highly organized attempt to dismantle and remove the then sitting government.
This was the setting when, a few years later, Toureaux (supposedly) became a participant in activities ….the consequences of which she may or may not have fully appreciated.
The Thicken Plots, Again
Police said Toureaux likely had relations with the “Secret Committee of Revolutionary Action" (CSAR), better known as La Cagoule, a pro-fascist and anti-communist terrorist group started by one Eugène Deloncle. Deloncle was a prominent WWII Nazi collaborator --an infatuation which helped not all when, after playing stupid politics against the Gestapo, he met the business end of their machine guns during a 1944 raid at his home. (In June 1920, Deloncle was awarded a Chevalier (Knight) of the Legion of Honour. Unsure if it was ever revoked).
Briefly La Cagoule ( 'hooded ones' or ‘Cowls’) saw Communism as a major threat to France, especially in its labor unions, ergo the cunning plan to overthrow Frances' already embattled Third Republic, create and install some parallel political system akin to Italy's and then align themselves thereto. It was a particularly nasty lot linked to assassinations, terrorism, etc., as in…..
« The group performed assassinations, bombings, sabotage of armaments, and other violent activities, some intended to cast suspicion on communists through false flag operations and to add to political instability. Planning a November 1937 overthrow of the French government, La Cagoule was infiltrated by the police, and the national government arrested and imprisoned about 70 men. At the outbreak of World War II (September 1939), the government released the men to fight in the French Army. Some supported other right-wing organizations and participated in the Vichy government of 1940–1944; others joined the Free French of Charles de Gaulle. It was not until 1948 that the government tried surviving members for the charges of 1937.[2] « Source : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Cagoule
Cool Footnote: L'Oreal “Because You're Worth It” L'Oreal - “Among others, the founder of the cosmetics company L'Oréal, Eugène Schueller, bankrolled the clandestine movement.” Also apparently providing funds was Michelin.
So the speculation that, circa 1936, Toureaux, acting for French police, was spying on La Cagoule, specifically bedding one key leader, one G. Jeantet, for insider info. Many believe it was her getting cozy with Jeantet that cost Toureaux her life. (At least one Cagoule member later testified this was the case, but later retracted his statement).
With the onset of WWII the Letitta Toureaux investigation was shelved. Her case files were ordered sealed for 100 (actually 101!) years. Why? Safe to say, few know and those who may have known are long gone. Until 2038, you are free to speculate. (In the meanwhile theories about the case are a sort of pension fund for many conspiracy theorists....).
The Confession Letter or KISS
This will definitely kill my book pitch but I have to end this with the letter. As an Occam's Razor fan I gotta side with ...“explanations constructed with the smallest possible set of elements”. Which takes us to.....
The Anonymous Letter
In June of 1962 an anonymous letter arrives at Paris Police. Written by a doctor in Perpignan, the presumed murderer offered amply detailed information and explanations for his motivations. In short the writer confessed to having murdered Letitta Toureaux out of jealously and anger over being being refused and jilted.
Here's the letter: You decide. Link to French version follows. (This is a rough Google translation complete with the errors & typos as they appeared. You can still get the drift….).
16 November 1962. Commissioner, I do not know if this letter will reach you. Perhaps it will be thrown into the basket before, as the work of a madman, and perhaps it would be better. No doubt you will remember the assassination of Laetitia Toureaux which took place Porte de Charenton, in the metro, on 16 May 1937. I am the assassin of Laetitia Toureaux. This letter will no doubt surprise you. Why does the murderer of a crime reputed perfect want to tell his crime more than twenty years later? I cannot say it exactly. Undoubtedly, I need to free myself (having kept the secret for so many years that I no longer feel remorse), perhaps also a kind of pride urges me to provide the necessary elements for the resolution of this matter. I have no intention of revealing my name to you and wish to remain in the most complete anonymity, out of respect for my family. I came from Perpignan, where I was born in 1915. At the end of my secondary education, I showed the desire to become a doctor and for that I went up to Paris in 1935. My father was easy, and with a car, I was a substantial pension. I arrived straight from my rather timid and naily province, so I let you think of my joy at my sudden freedom. Trained by some comrades more “on the page” than I, I soon knew all the dancers and cabarets of Paris and its surroundings. I was without false modesty enough handsome, but afflicted with a horrible accent that triggered attacks of hilarity in my one-day conquests. So I passed, more generally, as being of South American origin, and my accent then became, for these kind women, my most precious asset. It was in a dance that I became acquainted with Laetitia in November 1936. She was very pretty and possessed the rare charm, for a young man, of being a woman who had already lived. I immediately fell in love with him and gave him a respectful court. She did not give me any favours or allow me to take her back to her home.
We only met in Latin Quarter cafes or in my car. To my liking, she gave me too few wishes. In fact, she treated me as a kid, and I think, in the hindsight of time, that she was thus postponing to me, her motherly love, and she advised me, (greedled) me. But as time passed, I became more and more pressing. She treated my love with a gentle irony, which hurts me, and I began to get impatient, to make ridiculous scenes. Soon she shortened our appointments under more or less laughable pretexts. Taking my courage with both hands, I asked her to become my wife. She laughs at me kindly in the nose. Wounded in my pride and love, I went so far as to threaten her, and she (blank) me quite sharply.
I then decided to forget it (we were in March) and immersed myself in the work for my exams. She no longer gave a sign of life, but I could not forget her. Thus, after more than a month of silence, on 2 May, I went to the “Ermitage” dance or I knew how to find it. We went out and I offered him to take my car. She agreed. I then asked her humbly to let me see her again. After some hesitation she agreed and we met for 16 May. We will have to meet at the Hermitage for dinner together in the evening. But on the morning of 16 May, in the late morning, she came to meet me in a café in the Latin Quarter to cancel dinner: she was to attend a Valdotain dinner. I was angry at this disappointment, I accused him of finding another man. Furious in her turn, she replied that she had indeed rendezvous with another man, and as I defied her to prove to me, she pulled out a telegram signed by a certain Jean fixing it to meet for the same evening. Without waiting for my reaction, she told me that she would not see me again and went out without further delay. I was mad with rage and felt deceived. I went into my room in the midst of the deadliest anger. I spent several hours there. As the hours passed, I calmed down, but I was then possessed of a cold, much more worryingly rage.
After hesitating for a long time, I decided to join her at "The Hermitage" where I thought she had gone despite everything. But before I leave, I put in my pocket a knife that I had bought with comrades, one day that we wanted to "pattern" the girls. I took my car and went to the dance. But when I was in front of the establishment my timidity (or pride) took over, and I waited for Laetitia in front of the door. She left at about 6 p.m. As I hesitated about what I was going to do, she went to take the bus and followed her by car. I quickly got down to Porte de Charenton, so that I entered the subway just behind her, without her guessing my presence. She sat down first, I went upstairs right behind her, and, not knowing what I was doing, I called her when she had just sat down. Surprisingly, she turned round, I pulled out my knife and plunged her into her throat. She had no time to shout. I reset the body that had tilted and quickly lowered up to second class, in the next car. The train immediately left. I don't know how people didn't notice my trouble. I felt like everyone was staring at me. At Door Dore, a spare move told me that the body was discovered. Like all travellers, I was made to take the oar down.
At that moment, I planned to go and find out whether Laetitia had died, but I was incapable of any gesture: I was afraid to learn that I had killed her. I saw the stretcher pass and fail to find myself bad. We were kept for about half an hour, which seemed to me a century; I think that if one of the policemen had asked me for anything, I would have collapsed. But soon, we were let go. I'd go back to my hotel, I don't know how. It was only the next day, after a horrible night, that I learned of Laetitia's death. In the newspaper investigation, I also learned that Laetitia had been dismissed from Jean and that my jealousy was unfounded. I leave you to think of my state of mind.
A few days later, I went to look for my car, which had remained Porte de Charenton. As the days passed, I calmed down. The police were completely unaware of my existence. I followed the inquiry in the newspapers and also learned that I had committed a perfect crime, not attributable to my intelligence, but to an extraordinary combination of circumstances.
Now, many years have passed. I am a doctor, married and even grandfather, but this secret weighed heavily, not being a believer enough to entrust it to a priest.
I have no more remorse, and it seems to me to tell you the story of another; so my story will seem cold and dry to you. You, Commissioner, sitting behind your desk, are no doubt going to judge me harshly, but in truth I do not think a typical criminal, and I would no doubt have benefited from mitigating circumstances.
In the hope that this will be the end of the Laetitia Toureaux case. I would like to address you, Commissioner, my distinguished greetings. Source: “In the secret archives of the police” Editions Folio
Here’s a link to French Version