Inspired by a legal case in France from 1995 to 2018.
Events and disappearances are real.
Reconstruction of investigation, private life and dialogues are fictional.
SCAN IN PROGRESS GEL XYC678/T67
HIT ON GEL XYC678/T67 STORING AND PRINTING MATCH
JUDGE C. ARQUEY
Come in. Captain Robin?
[Flore] I'm very sorry, judge, but this is urgent.
We did it. We finally found a DNA match.
[Judge Arquey] I'm listening.
[Flore] Jean-Jacques Rançon, 54 years old,
forklift operator, convicted several times for rape and sexual assault.
He lived near the train station, we'd even crossed him off our suspect list.
Why is he in the database?
Three months ago, he tried to murder his wife.
He's only been in the system for three months?
We're lucky the lab ran the comparison after.
Otherwise, we would've missed him.
Juvenile division Convicted for rape
It's him. We finally caught him.
THE LOST STATION GIRLS
Hey, man. How are you?
Hey, brah. You good?
[indistinct chatter]
[chatter continues]
-How's it going? -He's on his way out.
[over radio] He's on his way out.
I'm good, thanks.
Everybody close in!
-[officer 1] Go! -[officer 2] Police! Stop where you are!
On the ground! Get down!
[officer 3] Get down! Get down, right here.
On the ground! Put your hands behind your back.
-Okay, now don't move anymore! -[handcuffs click]
He's cuffed.
He's cuffed, he's cuffed.
Suspect is detained and cuffed.
Sit up, sir. Come on, sit up. Sit up.
-Stand him up. -[officer 3] Come on. Stand up, sir.
Stand up.
-Are you Jean-Jacques Rançon? -Yes.
It's 1:45 p.m. As of now, you're in police custody for first degree murder.
Bring him in.
[officer 3] Okay, everyone. Let's go.
I can't believe this is for real. It feels like a dream.
Sixteen years, we waited.
This is one of those days you'll remember for the rest of your life.
-[sirens approaching] -Here they come, they're here.
[sighs deeply]
Congratulations, Flore. I'm very proud of you.
Thank you, commissioner. Thank you.
Hey, our hero.
-Congrats! -[both chuckle softly]
-Well done. Impressive! -Thanks.
[officer whistles]
-Well done. -[officer] Congratulations, everyone.
-[woman] Way to go! -You've earned it.
-Thanks. -Of course.
[Piétri] I'm very proud of you, gentlemen. You all did excellent work.
[Damien] I'm glad it's over.
[officer whistles]
[sighs]
[Piétri] When I look at all of you, here, in front of me,
I realize that some of you were still children when we began our investigation.
And, of course, I think of those who were, uh,
those who were with us from the very start,
and who have since retired.
I'm proud today, because people have always pointed out our mistakes
and failures in this case, but I want 'em to understand
that my teams have fought day and night for 16 years,
as best as possible with what was available.
Today, we also have the opportunity to show the victims
that we have not forgotten them or abandoned their families.
So, in the name of all those families,
those parents, children, brothers, and sisters.
All those who never stopped trusting us over the years,
I ask you here, today, to fulfill your duty.
That's right, your duty, and get this man to confess, okay?
DNA evidence might not be sufficient, so make him talk.
[news reporter on TV] This man is Jean-Jacques Rançon,
an unemployed warehouse clerk.
He's a suspect in the murder of Leïla Chakir
and may also be involved in the murder of Marianne Perez,
as well as the disappearance of Tatiana Andujar.
This case has been mind-boggling.
For 16 years,
there have been dozens of suspects, searches, police detentions,
hundreds of interrogations,
and a general frustration due to the lack of answers.
[newscaster on radio] The police have confirmed the arrest of a 54-year-old man
in connection with the case of the lost station girls.
Our sources say, the suspect has just been taken into custody
but hasn't confessed.
Although the disappearance of Tatiana Andujar in 1995,
and the murders of Leïla Chakir and Marianne Perez
in 1998 remain unsolved,
their families, along with the entire city, still hope for answers
after a 16-year investigation.
[Flore] Thanks to scientific breakthroughs, we found him,
but it would be up to us to obtain his confession.
Together, one last time.
RANÇON- NOT THE PROFILE - NOT A DOCTOR NOTHING TO REPORT
[lawyer] Can you uncuff my client, please?
Captain.
I wasn't sure you'd come.
Yeah, I didn't wanna steal your spotlight.
[Flore sighs]
[Vidal] Yeah.
Here we thought he was some kind of mad doctor
with an operating room in the back of a van.
When, in fact, he's just some poor guy with a knife.
We really screwed that up.
Yeah.
The most important thing now is to work together
and do it by the book.
[Vidal] Do we have anything to tie him to the Andujar case?
No. He was incarcerated up north in 1995.
He was locked up for rape.
I checked with the prison director and... he never had any furloughs.
It can't be him.
Okay.
So, we only have Leïla's boot that ties back to him. Is that all?
Yeah, that's all.
Before getting to that, I want to make him talk.
Get him to trust me.
We've waited 16 years for this.
Mr. Rançon, would you please tell me about your childhood?
You grew up with your parents?
My father was a mason, and my mother was simple-minded.
And your siblings?
We're 13, but I didn't grow up with them.
They were taken from my parents when we were young.
You weren't?
No, I'm the only kid that stayed with my parents.
-And why is that? -I don't know.
[Vidal] Can you tell me about your relationships or marriages?
How long they lasted? How many kids you had?
There haven't been that many.
There was... Solange, for one year.
Then Agnes, for a month.
Then Nathalie, for five years, but she left me with our son, Thomas.
And why is that?
I went to prison and they gave her sole custody.
Then who else?
[Rançon] After, uh... Well, there were others.
There was Marie, but I broke it off with her quickly,
wasn't very pretty.
[Flore] Hmm.
What kind of women do you like?
Young women with large breasts.
I love large breasts.
Yeah. The guy likes large breasts. I get it.
I've always had women younger than me.
Like Leslie, my last one.
The first time you met her, how old was Leslie?
Sixteen and I was 44.
[Vidal] Really? And you had children with her?
Yeah, two. Magali and Yannick. Mmm.
Yeah, I don't know where they are.
I'd love to see them and their mother.
Would you consider yourself a seducer?
Hmm. Well, women do like me, that's for sure.
But they're the ones who come to me.
I don't go looking for them. They find me.
-[Flore] Hmm. -[Vidal] Got it.
And would you say that, uh, I mean, do you...
Would you say that you were maybe a little, uh,
a bit violent with a woman once?
Or never at all?
Nah, I've never been violent with women, nah.
Or I don't remember.
Because January 20th, 1992, when you lived in Amiens,
it looks like you were found guilty of forcible rape.
Rape under threat of a weapon, sentenced to eight years in prison.
Do you want to explain what happened?
There's this woman that walks by me.
I instantly like her.
I decide to follow her, because I want to make love to her.
-Then what? -Well, then, uh,
I take out my knife, and the woman gets undressed.
Hang on, hang on. Why do you have a knife?
Can you explain to us why you have a knife?
I thought you said you weren't violent with women?
To make me feel more confident.
-I see. -[Rançon] Yeah.
And then what? What happened after?
[Rançon] After, she lies down, I lie on top of her.
I make love to her and ejaculate quickly.
Then, I grab my bag and leave.
That night, I call her. I call her a few times.
The cops trace my calls and pick me up.
Why did you call the woman?
I want to see her again.
Hold her tight and make love to her.
Well, yeah.
He has no empathy, nothing. He's completely egocentric
and if we force him to talk about Marianne and Leïla too quickly,
he'll shut down for sure.
He's only interested in himself.
[Piétri] Hmm.
So, what do you suggest, then?
Well, I'm gonna let him talk about himself
and when I feel I have his trust,
I'll talk about Leïla, then Vidal will work on him.
[Piétri] Are you onboard with this?
If he doesn't confess before tonight, it gets complicated.
His lawyer will probably try to run out the clock, right?
He'll ask us to let Rançon get some sleep,
and we can't let him do that. Okay?
So, let's not let them impose their own tempo. You're in charge,
-show them who's boss. Okay? -Okay.
[Flore sighs]
[door closes]
[Flore] When you got out of prison, what did you do?
[Rançon] When I got out, I wanted to get far away from there.
I went down south to the city of Perpignan,
the city furthest south in France.
And where did you live?
At the Hotel Du Midi, the cheapest one.
Hotel Du Midi,
-is that what you just said? -[Rançon] Yeah.
[Flore] Were you on the balcony sometimes?
[Rançon] Yeah, I'd go out on the balcony.
I'd watch people passing by while I smoked a cigarette.
And, uh, when you didn't have to work, what did you do?
Well, like I told you, uh, I'd walk around the neighborhood,
near the train station.
I'd go eat a kebab at the place on the avenue sometimes.
But where were you walking to?
Nowhere special, just around town. That's all.
-[Flore] Where exactly? I'm curious. -I went everywhere.
-All the neighborhoods. -Up the street to the station?
-Yeah. -[Flore] Okay.
Leïla Chakir, do you know who that is?
Yeah, yeah, I think I know who Leïla Chakir is.
Yeah, I think I remember hearing about, about her on TV when she died.
Here, let me show you a photo of this person.
Do you recognize her?
I mean, I don't know her, but like I said, I've seen her photo.
They talked about her in the news, uh...
She was stabbed a few times with a knife and slit in two?
Do you know where we found her body?
Yeah. Up near the supermarket, towards the Café Figueres.
[Vidal] Yes, that's exactly right.
Is there any reason you would go over there?
I don't know, maybe to go shopping, or to, uh, buy a newspaper,
or a magazine, or whatever.
Do you have a buddy or two over there?
-[Rançon] No. -No? Maybe a girlfriend?
-No. -So, no girlfriend?
How 'bout a bar, are you a regular in one of them? Is that it?
-Do you have a favorite bar there? -No.
-Do you hang out in bars? -No. I don't go to bars.
[Vidal] Now that really surprises me,
because you say you liked to walk around near the train station,
but you don't like any of the things around the station!
Captain, please.
No, don't worry.
I don't believe you. Do you?
No, his story's weak.
So, tell me, uh, Mr. Rançon,
what exactly do you know about DNA profiling
and its use in the criminal justice system?
Do you know anything about this?
-I think I know what it is. -[Flore] Hmm?
If a person's DNA is found, that means the person was there at the scene.
Yes, that's right.
We found your DNA profile at Leïla Chakir's crime scene.
What do you have to say about that?
[Rançon] That's not possible.
-That can't be for real. -[Flore] Okay.
We're providing you with a genetic matching report, from the DNA database,
dated October 10th, 2014.
Between the trace evidence collected from the victim's shoe,
found at the crime scene, and your biological sample.
[Flore] Now what do you have to say about that?
I have nothing to say, I wasn't there. That's all I can tell you.
I'm gonna need a logical explanation.
Tell me how it's possible.
I don't know. I have no idea.
[Vidal] You don't know, you can't remember, you're tired.
Damn it, it's not that complicated. Were you in contact with Leïla Chakir?
-Yes or no? -No.
Okay, I'll repeat the question. It's real simple.
Did you have any contact with Leïla Chakir?
No, no, I didn't!
So, then why was your DNA at the crime scene?
I don't know. I don't know what to tell you.
[inhales deeply]
[sighs]
This guy's unbelievable.
He makes us think he doesn't give a shit,
so we try to break him
and there's still no effect.
He's a predator.
He has survival instincts.
Did forensics find something at his place?
No incriminating evidence.
Nothing to tie him to the victims.
So, all we have is partial DNA on a boot.
Needless to say, his lawyer can disprove the connection in court easily,
"Yes, my client found the boot in the street and wanted to take a closer look,
then threw it back into the gutter." End of story.
Without a confession, we're dead meat.
And he's been here for 12 hours.
That gives you 36 hours to break him down.
Thirty-six.
Don't make the same mistakes I did back then.
You need to remain lucid.
[snores softly]
[footsteps depart]
Thursday, October 13
[sighs]
[liquid pouring]
[indistinct chatter]
Let the guys rattle him, and pick up
Let the guys rattle him, and pick up afterwards.
[indistinct chatter continues]
[Arnaud] Listen to me, your DNA didn't just magically appear on that boot, okay?
Did you kill her?
No.
I want to know if you killed Leïla Chakir.
Leïla Chakir, a 19-year-old student, for fuck's sake!
You know damn well what we're talking about,
so I want you to answer his question!
Did you kill her, yes or no?
So, did you kill her?
-Did you? -No.
So, why's your DNA on her boot, motherfucker?
[lawyer] Okay, listen, that's enough.
[Arnaud] Well?
Mmm. I knew it.
You're a fetishist.
-Huh? What's that? -[Vidal] Yeah, of course.
You get off on womens' shoes, right?
Do they excite you, is that it?
You're obsessed, right?
Tell me, this boot, do you recognize it?
Well? Does it excite you?
Look at it!
I've never seen it.
[Arnaud] Your DNA's on it, you idiot.
[Vidal] How the hell did your DNA get on it?
Explain it to us. Maybe we're stupid and don't understand.
Tell us how your DNA ended up on this shoe.
Maybe we're all stupid here!
Do you understand what we're saying?
Hey, boot boy. Look at me.
I'm gonna ask you one last time.
Was it you who killed Leïla Chakir?
I never killed anybody.
Never.
[exhales deeply]
[Vidal] Hey, he's starting to get tired. It's gonna be your turn soon.
You know...
in the world that he lives in, what he did is normal.
What you have to do... is get inside his head.
You know?
Use whatever you think makes him scared.
Give me your pack of cigarettes.
Since when do you smoke?
Give me your pack of cigarettes.
Merci.
[footsteps depart]
[cell door opens]
Do you mind leaving us, please?
Is that your kid?
Iris.
Like the flower?
Yeah.
And yours are, uh, Magali and Yannick, right?
Yeah, that's right.
Mine just turned six.
Yannick is four and, uh, Magali, six. Same age as Iris.
This is the second night I haven't seen mine.
This never happened to us before, you know.
That's pretty bad, huh?
You'll have to go see her as soon as we're done here.
Because kids, they're so... Hmm.
[Rançon sighs]
Last night, I called her... for her bedtime story.
What kind of bedtime story?
Just stories I make up. Not the fairy tales we know.
Not the ones they wrote to teach little girls to be quiet and well-behaved,
and to... to be scared of dragons, and wolves.
I don't want my daughter to think that's all life is.
Always being scared.
Children shouldn't have to be scared.
They're too young for that.
So you know what being scared is?
Yeah, I know.
And your children, did you ever let them be scared?
No.
Did you ever hurt them?
Never.
Well, we're the same then.
You know how it feels to love your children.
The same way...
Marianne's parents do.
And Leïla's.
You know what those women are scared of?
Those mothers.
Not knowing what happened to their daughters.
We really can't leave 'em in the dark.
Yeah.
I'm the one who killed 'em.
Oh, you did?
Yeah.
So you killed Leïla Chakir?
Yeah.
And Marianne Perez?
Yeah.
Let's go get your official statement, okay?
Okay.
[Flore sighs]
[breathes deeply]
Bring him upstairs.
[sniffles]
[handcuffs click]
He folded
[chairs clattering]
[cell phone vibrates]
[sighs in relief]
[sobbing]
Oh, my God. [sighs heavily]
Don't go in there now.
-Well, I have to, because I-- -I've already told you.
Okay.
Oh, fucking hell.
[laughs]
[sniffles]
See ya, Nico.
-You're going home? -Yeah.
Finally.
Mrs. Perez, I'm sorry for making you wait, but...
we finally know for sure.
He confessed to it all.
He's guilty.
[Carmen sobbing]
I'm so very sorry it took a long time, but we finally got him.
We started this together,
we finished together. You were right.
It's not completely finished, you know?
Yeah, I know.
Tell me again why you...
why you wanted to get into this.
Become a cop.
-I already told you why. -Nah, nah, nah.
Don't give me that sad boyfriend story
or how you got into the academy accidentally.
[chuckles] That was a great story, a great story, but...
I didn't believe it.
It's for my sister, Anaïs.
I understood what happened to her only after her suicide.
She never said anything to anyone.
Not to my parents, not to me...
and definitely not to the cops.
I'm so sorry.
I think I'll go see my daughter.
Good idea.
I'll see you soon, Captain.
See you soon, Captain.
[door opens]
[crowd and reporters shouting indistinctly]
[female reporter] Hey! Over here!
[photographer] Over here! Hey, over here!
[indistinct shouting continues]
[officer] Everyone, please stay back.
[male reporter] Why did you do it?
[reporter on TV] The man arrested on Tuesday in Perpignan
has admitted to the charges against him.
It was the advances in forensic science that led to the reopening of the case.
Jean-Jacques Rançon, 54, confessed to the murders of
Leïla Chakir and Marianne Perez.
He will be taken to the prosecution department
for a hearing in front of the investigating judge
and the public prosecutor,
who will determine his pre-trial detention process.
[woman on TV] Why did you do it?
Why did you hurt those innocent girls? You animal!
Murderer!
[gasps]
[sobbing]
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 1995
The Montana SPECIAL NIGHT - LADIES' NIGHT
I'm really very sorry.
Rançon couldn't have taken Tatiana, he was already in prison back then.
Don't be sorry, I'm glad it's over for Carmen's family.
And I believe there's still a suspect.
I found this in Tatiana's things when I was boxing up the house.
My daughter went out to the bar that Christopher Delpech owned,
the night she went missing.
You should question him again.
It's unsettling, but he wasn't the proprietor of The Montana in '95.
Well, yeah, but you don't just buy a bar like that.
He had to have been a client there before buying it.
That was after.
And that still doesn't prove anything.
Besides, when we investigated Nora's murder,
we really didn't find anything that linked him to Tatiana.
Yes, you did. You found the manuscript about my daughter.
I know it's frustrating, but it's not proof.
-You need to follow other leads. -[scoffs]
Any loose ends.
[phone ringing]
Mmm-hmm. Yes. Well, well.
Well, I'm sorry, ma'am, but it can't be him.
Because in 1963, Rançon was three years old.
So he couldn't have stolen your mother's car.
What do you mean, "So what?"
But I... I... I fully understand.
Yes, but he's never been a bus driver either.
Exactly, yes. I'm sorry, too.
Goodbye and have a wonderful day.
Since this morning, we've had a bunch of crazy calls.
One said Rançon was in a circus,
another one claims he was near the station this morning.
Jeez!
Who's Sonia Hamady?
[phone ringing]
[Bertrand] Hello, judicial police. One moment, please.
You took this call, right?
Uh... Oh, I remember now.
Her story wasn't very clear, I didn't understand everything.
She recognized Rançon on TV,
said he was the guy who attacked her in January '98.
-But I mean, she wouldn't be the first. -You wrote down her address?
-Yes, I did -Mmm-hmm.
Avenue Belfort. Damn it.
-That's near the train station, right? -Right next to where Rançon lived.
[keyboard clacking]
CANONGE SEARCH
What do we have?
POLICE STATEMENT
[Bertrand] Let's see. Hmm.
Her attacker walked up and talked to her first.
Stabbed her multiple times, large wound on her abdomen.
Violence with a weapon. What's this half-ass qualification?
They dismissed her complaint?
How come we never heard about this case?
How come the prosecution never made the connection?
-What do you guys do down there? -I don't know.
[phones ringing]
[officer] Perpignan Police Department. One moment, I'll put you through.
[cell phone vibrating]
[Flore] Miss Hamady?
Yes.
I'm Captain Flore Robin of the judicial police.
Miss Hamady, are you still there?
I want you to know that with me, you'll be able to speak freely.
I promise to listen
and especially believe you.
Hello? Are you there?
If you don't say anything, he'll never be convicted for what he did to you.
It doesn't matter, he's going to prison.
Yes, we know he'll finish his life in prison,
but if he hurt you, I want him to be convicted for that, too.
[Sonia] Why?
I want you to be able to say in court,
"This is what you did, you need to pay for it."
You said you recognized him?
Do you know what I said to myself
as he stabbed me in the stomach with his knife?
I told myself, "Sonia, remember his face.
You have to remember his cold, perverted smile, full of rotten teeth.
His gaze, so dark and sadistic."
I remember everything.
His hands were enormous and he was big.
I've spent 16 years with his face in my head.
I remember it all.
I remember how he breathes,
how... how his breath stank of alcohol and cold cigarettes.
I can see the knife. The shiny blade...
and hear it slice my stomach in two.
It's a weird sound, you know.
I still see his eyes.
They're telling me I'm about to die tonight.
You're very courageous, Sonia.
If you allow it, I'd like to come over.
I want to take your official statement.
It's very important.
I'm so sorry.
I can promise that I won't let you down.
How many other victims did he leave behind?
How many lives were broken, erased and reduced to silence?
Justice is never complete.
There will always be someone you can't bring in.
No.
Alex's birthday
[Marie-José on video] This is great! I got one for my birthday, too!
I found it in that shop you like, next to the market.
[Manuel] Alex, you can eat with your fingers if you want.
[Marie-José] I'm gonna tickle you to make you eat.
Hey, stop filming us and let us play.
[Tatiana] I got to be friends with this guy at lunch.
I said I was looking for a job as a waitress.
[Manuel] I'm not sure you want to do that kind of work.
What's your friend's name?
[tape rewinding]
-Who knows? -[Manuel] What's your friend's name?
-[girls giggling] -[girl] Hey!
-[Manuel] I'm not sure... -[girl] Hey!
[Marie-José] Do you remember what she said?
[Manuel] Hang on, let me think.
-[Tatiana on video] Dad, stop singing. -There. See where she says it?
Yeah, I remember this, but, uh, I don't remember what she said.
-Um... -Hang on. Let me play it again.
Yeah, great, play it again.
[girl] Hey!
Come on, remember, what was her friend's name?
I'm sorry, but...
[sighs] Why do you wanna know?
I thought perhaps, uh, we might've missed something useful she said there.
It's stupid, I know.
I don't know where to look anymore.
[girls giggling]
[Marie-José] Oh! Would you stop that?
-[girl] That's great! -[Marie-José] Look at this little monster!
I'm gonna tickle you to make you eat.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY ALEX
Since it's your birthday, you don't have to, okay?
Okay, it's all right.
[Manuel] Yeah, you'll love this.
[Marie-José] Hey, would you stop filming me?
Oh.
[Manuel] Why did you go over there?
[Tatiana] There's this place near the beach. It's called The Montana.
When we were having lunch, I got to be friends with this guy.
I said I was looking for a job as a waitress.
[Manuel] ...that kind of work, but...
-Manuel! -[Manuel] What's your friend's name?
-[Tatiana] Christopher Delpech. -[Manuel] Really?
[Tatiana] Yeah.
[Manuel] Delpech, like the singer.
[Tatiana] Yeah, exactly.
[girl] I want some more cake and ice cream!
[Manuel] ♪ Over the pond, suddenly I saw some wild birds ♪
Oh, Dad. Stop singing, please.
[♪ French song playing, Michel Delpech, "Le Chasseur"]
-[inaudible conversation] -[♪ song continues]
[♪ song continues over speakers]
[Flore] Yeah.
[Iris] A-T...
[Flore] I...
I...
-A... -A...
N.
A.
Thank you, that's perfect. [kisses]
Thanks, sweetie.
You're welcome!
[Flore] I had picked up some of Sabueso's habits.
I had my own personal archives,
full of old police reports, investigation notes,
and weird coincidences that I've lost sleep over.
It was my turn to carry the leaky bucket.
We know it's useless most of the time, but we do it anyway...
because you never know when that day will come.
STATION GIRLS
Are you finished?
Yes, I'm finished for today.
So, what do you want us to do?
Mmm, let's go to the beach!
-Okay, great idea. -Whoo-hoo!
-Okay. -Okay, let's go to the beach!
-You didn't forget our picnic, right? -No way, I would never forget that!
CAPE BÉAR
To this day, the disappearance of Tatiana remains a mystery.
Nobody was investigated or prosecuted. No clue was found.
In 2023, it was transferred to the "cold cases" department
in the French justice system.
Disappeared September 24 1995