The grandfather of tragic Émile Soleil had previously slapped and punched his children, according to reports of wiretapped conversations.
Last week, Philippe Vedovini, his wife Anne and his two adult children were arrested in connection with the two-year-old boy’s disappearance from the sleepy French hamlet of Haut Vernet, but were later released.
Local media reported that the sleepy French hamlet of Haut Vernet family had been under suspicion for months, and had wiretapped them looking for signs that they may have abused Émile.
During these wiretapped conversations, the Vedovini children discussed how Philippe would beat and physically abuse them.
The children reportedly talked about being punched, slapped and having their hair pulled.
But there is no evidence that Philippe treated Émile in the same way.
Investigators are still analysing all the evidence, including a set of bones found near the village that they believe indicated Émile’s remains were likely preserved in a protected, almost sterile environment like a freezer before being moved and found.
Analyses of bones found near a river in the sleepy French hamlet of Haut Vernet early last year suggest they had moved before they were discovered, which experts believe could suggest a deliberate staging.
During wiretapped conversations, the Vedovini children discussed how their father Philippe (pictured) would beat and physically abuse them
Émile Soleil disappeared from the sleepy French hamlet of Haut Vernet
A gendarme stands outside the house of the grandparents of Emile Soleil, a French toddler who was found dead after going missing in 2023
Based on the decomposition of the remains, they believe they had been carefully preserved before being exposed to the open air, where they were found.
The analyses also suggested that the two-year-old’s skull, recovered late last March, was deposited only just before it was stumbled upon by a walker less than a mile from his grandparents’ house, from which he disappeared on July 8, 2023.
Police said they had already scoured the area during intensive searches.
According to the investigation, clothes found near the remains last April were not in a state of decomposition – which they believe suggests he did not get lost alone and did not die where his bones and clothes were found.
‘The expert reports suggest the likelihood of third-party involvement in the disappearance and death of Émile Soleil,’ prosecutor Jean-Luc Blachon told a press conference late last week.
The skull was found with signs of ‘violent facial trauma’ on one side, Mr Bachon said at the press conference on Thursday.
They are yet to establish whether the blow was carried out by an object or a fist, according to Le Parisien, but suggestion of third party involvement has become a major line of inquiry.
Investigators have already carried out 287 witness interviews, combed 285 hectares of land and pulled together more than 60 expert missions to analyse the findings, it was revealed last week.
Colonel Christophe Berthelin assured some 15 investigators have been working every day since the July 2023 disappearance to understand what happened to the child.
Anne Vedovini, 59, was arrested with her husband on Tuesday. Émile Soleil had been staying with his grandparents at the time of his disappearance
Investigators haul off a horse trailer from the property of the grandparents of Emile Soleil on March 25
But they have not yet conclusively established what happened to little Emile Soleil, or why he was killed.
Mr Bachon also revealed a setback in the investigation, as a blood-coated planter found near the Saint Martin chapel the Sunday prior ‘did not contain any evidence likely to advance the investigations’.
Investigators were looking to determine whether the blood was human, and whether it might shed any more light on Emile’s story.
The mystery deepened as it emerged last week that the family’s Roman Catholic priest who baptised Émile before he went missing had ‘taken his own life’, according to reports.
Father Claude Gilliot, 85, is said to have died from a ‘massive overdose’ at his home in Aix-en-Provence, French media reports. Claims have been made that he fell out with the Vedovinis before his death.
Father Gilliot had frequently expressed his emotional angst during the saga.
The priest was once very close to Émile’s grandparents, along with two of their 10 adult children.
The Vedovini family are all devout Roman Catholics, and at one stage relied on Father Gilliot for their spiritual guidance, including celebrating Mass and hearing Confessions.
But they fell out after Father Gilliot provided a photo of Émile to the media, in an attempt try and find the little boy.
