Jubillar bones sent for DNA analysis, but acidic soil may thwart identification and delay September appeal trial
Bones found in a Tarn field are being analysed near Paris, but acidic soil may prevent DNA identification of Delphine Jubillar, who disappeared in December 2020.
Discovery in a Tarn field
Two femurs and other lower-body bones were unearthed on 16 July 2026 in a field near Mailhoc, about ten minutes from the couple's former home in Cagnac-les-Mines. Cédric Jubillar, who confessed on 6 July to killing his wife during an argument on the night of 15–16 December 2020, led investigators to the spot. He told the Toulouse assize court president that he had buried the body in a mound of compost that was later spread across the property by the landowner, who said he saw nothing. The two-day search, involving around 100 gendarmes and an anti-drone unit, was suspended on the evening of 17 July. Colonel Jean-Michel Doose, commander of the Tarn gendarmerie group, said the operation should not resume.
DNA analysis faces hurdles
The bones were flown by gendarmerie helicopter to the Institut de recherche criminelle de la Gendarmerie nationale (IRCGN) in Pontoise, where a team of six to seven experts is working on DNA extraction. Colonel Francis Hermitte, head of the criminalistics biology genetics division, cautioned that the remains had been in acidic soil and that it might be impossible to obtain enough biological material for a genetic profile.
We have bones that were kept in an acidic environment: there is every possibility that it will be impossible to get enough good-quality biological or genetic material to obtain a genetic profile allowing identification of the remains that were found.
Lieutenant-colonel Stéphane Meyblum, second-in-command of the Tarn gendarmerie, said a result was expected "in a relatively short time", but the IRCGN warned that the technical analyses could take several days.
Legal calendar in flux
Cédric Jubillar was sentenced to 30 years in prison at first instance. His appeal trial is scheduled to open on 21 September 2026 before the Haute-Garonne assize court in Toulouse. His lawyer, Me Pierre Debuisson, argued that the new evidence makes it impossible to keep that date.
Given all the steps that have to be taken, the procedures to carry out, the questioning of Cédric Jubillar, it is not at all conceivable to maintain this trial in September. It would be unreasonable and contrary to holding a fair trial.
Me Philippe Pressecq, representing Delphine Jubillar's cousin, countered that the case file is now complete and can be judged in September. If the appeal court accepts Jubillar's version of an accidental death during a dispute, the maximum penalty drops to 20 years. Me Isabelle Steyer, a Paris lawyer specialised in femicides, described the confession as a strategy to sway jurors, noting that the bone analysis may never reveal the cause of death.
Family torn between relief and anger
The couple's children, Louis (12) and Elyah (7), were told of the discovery on Thursday evening by their maternal aunt. Their lawyer, Me Malika Chmani, said the news triggered shock, tears and incomprehension.
They each have a photo of their mother in their room. Delphine Jubillar appears smiling, full of life, and now we are talking about bones. It is quite violent. 'What is left of mummy?' they asked.
Louis, who had no doubt about his father's guilt and now calls him by his first name, felt relief that he would finally have a grave to visit. Elyah, who was 18 months old at the time of the disappearance, has fewer memories. A cousin, Manon Quincampoix, 26, said she felt "a mixture of relief and anger" when she learned of the find.
- Delphine Jubillar disappears from the couple's home in Cagnac-les-Mines during the night of 15–16 December.
- Cédric Jubillar admits for the first time, in a letter revealed by his lawyers, his 'responsibility' in his wife's death.
- Bones, including two femurs, are found in a field near Mailhoc at the location indicated by Cédric Jubillar.
- Search operation is suspended; gendarmes say it should not resume. Bones are sent to IRCGN in Pontoise for DNA analysis.
- Cédric Jubillar's appeal trial is scheduled to begin before the Haute-Garonne assize court in Toulouse.
What comes next
While the IRCGN continues its work, the gendarmes have lifted the cordon around the search site along the RD600 between Mailhoc and Villeneuve-sur-Vère. Cédric Jubillar, who now admits an "abominable act", was extracted from prison on 15 July to give his new account to the investigating judge. The prosecution and civil parties are waiting to see whether the bones can be formally identified and, if so, whether they will yield any clues about the exact cause of death. For the family, the priority is to recover the remains and begin a mourning process that has been frozen for more than five years.
