Christian Ranucci
| Christian Ranucci | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Christian Jean Gilbert Ranucci April 6, 1954 Avignon, France |
| Died | July 28, 1976 (aged 22) Baumettes prison, Marseilles, France |
| Cause of death | Execution by guillotine |
| Resting place | Cimetière Saint-Véran, Avignon |
| Other names | "Le bourreau du bois de Valdonne" ("The torturer of the wood of Valdonne") |
| Occupation | Travelling salesman |
| Height | 5 ft 8 in (173 cm) |
| Weight | 159 lb (72 kg) |
| Criminal charge |
Child abduction Child murder |
| Criminal penalty | Capital punishment |
| Criminal status | Executed by guillotine on July 28, 1976 |
| Parent(s) | Jean Ranucci and Héloïse Mathon |
| Killings | |
| Victims | Marie-Dolorès Rambla, 8 |
| Date | June 3, 1974 |
| State(s) | Bouches-du-Rhône |
| Location(s) |
Marseilles (abduction) Belcodène (car accident) Near Peypin (murder scene) |
| Weapons |
Stones Flick knife |
|
Date apprehended
|
June 5, 1974 |
Christian Ranucci (April 6, 1954 – July 28, 1976) was one of the last persons executed in France, having been convicted of the abduction and murder, committed on June 3, 1974, of Marie-Dolorès Rambla aged eight. He kidnapped the girl near her home on the estate, Cité Sainte-Agnès in Marseilles, and later stabbed her with a switchblade near the village of Peypin after the two were involved in a car accident.
His case greatly influenced the debate over capital punishment in France after the book Le Pull-over rouge (1978) was published by former lawyer and journalist Gilles Perrault. It called Ranucci's guilt into question, and had a notable impact on public opinion, having sold over 1 million copies.
Christian Ranucci was born in Avignon, France on April 6, 1954, to Jean Ranucci, a board painter and veteran of the Indochina War, and Héloïse Mathon, a caregiver.
When he was four years old, he witnessed his father slashing his mother in the face with a knife — similar to the one Ranucci would later use to commit murder — at the door of a court after their divorce had been pronounced. However, other sources, like Ranucci's father, testified that his son did not really witness this attack, but only saw his injured mother as a nursemaid was carrying him in her arms.
Mother and son soon fled, moving home numerous times, as Héloïse Mathon was afraid that her ex-husband would kill them both (although Jean never attempted to find his son). As a result of this experience, she became an overprotective mother. Years later, Ranucci, charged with Rambla's murder, confessed to the examining magistrate that he had lived his entire childhood with the constant fear that his father, depicted as violent by his mother, would eventually find and kill him.
During his school years, Ranucci was described as a mediocre pupil, repeating a year, but still earning his National Diploma (BEPC) at the age of 17. He was often violent towards his schoolmates, and remained immature and uncommunicative as a young man. Meanwhile, he worked as a waiter at a bar, Le Rio Bravo, owned by his mother, located in Saint-Jean-de-Moirans, near Voiron (Isère), which he ran when she was absent.
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Wikipedia