A mother in her thirties was killed by her companion in New Caledonia, less than three weeks after a previous feminicide, the public prosecutor announced on Monday.
A mother in her thirties was killed by her companion in New Caledonia, less than three weeks after a previous feminicide, the public prosecutor announced on Monday. The facts took place on July 30 in the Kanak tribe of Ny in Bourail, 180 kilometers north of Nouméa. According to the first elements communicated by the prosecution, the couple, parents of two children aged 2 and 8, had consumed several bottles of alcohol and argued during the evening, to the point that a cousin would have intervened to appease the situation.
Although no witnesses said they “saw injuries from violence on the 33-year-old victim”, family members discovered her “lifeless in her bed” the next morning and called the emergency services, said said in a press release the public prosecutor, Yves Dupas. After unsuccessful attempts to resuscitate her, the young woman died and numerous traces of blows were brought to light by post-mortem examinations, including “cerebral edema associated with acute intracranial hemorrhage, pneumothorax as well as chest injury”.
The autopsy ordered by the prosecution is scheduled for the next few days. Placed in police custody, the victim’s partner admitted “having slapped and punched the right cheek while his partner scratched him”, the same source said. The alleged perpetrator, aged 32, was charged with intentional homicide by a partner and placed under judicial supervision. The prosecution reserves the right to appeal this decision, said Yves Dupas. This feminicide comes after a 35-year-old mother was killed by her companion in mid-July in Nouméa. Domestic violence is reaching record levels in New Caledonia, and is the cause of the incarceration of one in five prisoners.