French father charged with kidnapping 11-year-old Lyhanna, who vanished from school in Fleurance
Jérôme B., 41, was indicted and jailed Monday for the abduction of Lyhanna, 11, last seen entering his car outside her school in Fleurance, Gers. The girl remains missing as nearly 200 gendarmes comb the countryside.
The disappearance
Lyhanna Rameau Bernard, 11, vanished on Friday afternoon after leaving Collège Hubert Reeves in Fleurance, a town of 6,000 about 80 km west of Toulouse. A surveillance camera recorded her getting into a car at 15:05. Witnesses had already reported seeing her in the vehicle, and investigators quickly identified the driver as Jérôme B., a 41-year-old father of two from a nearby village.
Who is the suspect?
Jérôme B. is the father of one of Lyhanna's closest friends. The two families had known each other for years, but Lyhanna's parents cut off contact earlier this year after a sleepover at his home raised concerns. The girl told her mother he had tickled her and played with her a lot, describing it as "like a daddy playing with his daughter." The parents found the behaviour ambiguous and inappropriate.
As soon as little Lyhanna reported what had happened — gestures that were understood as inappropriate — at that moment, the parents cut off all contact.
According to BFMTV, Jérôme B. worked as a contract maintenance agent in several lycées in the Gers from September 2018. His contract at Lycée Lannes in Lectoure was terminated in February 2021 after a disciplinary procedure triggered by a headteacher's report of inappropriate behaviour with a female student, including persistent messages on social media. Le Parisien reports he was also removed from two other schools in the region following suspicions of sexual misconduct involving minors. His criminal record, however, is clean.
The investigation
Jérôme B. was arrested on Saturday and placed in police custody. On Sunday, Auch prosecutor Clémence Meyer stated he told investigators he had dropped Lyhanna at the municipal swimming pool, an account she described as "inconsistent and imprecise." On Monday evening, he was indicted for kidnapping and sequestration of a minor under 15 and remanded in custody. He faces up to 30 years in prison. Appearing before a judge in Agen, he refused to speak or answer any questions.
His statements were judged inconsistent and imprecise.
The search
Nearly 200 gendarmes, including a mobile squadron, are searching the area around Fleurance. Teams have conducted door-to-door inquiries, a beat sweep, and searches of lakes, rivers, fields, and wooded zones, assisted by drones and helicopters. A security perimeter was established around the leisure centre near the Gers river, where the suspect claimed to have left the girl. His car has been seized for forensic examination. Residents joined a police-organised search on Sunday that yielded "various objects and leads," now under analysis.
- Lyhanna leaves Collège Hubert Reeves in Fleurance.
- CCTV records Lyhanna getting into Jérôme B.'s car.
- Parents report Lyhanna missing to gendarmerie.
- Jérôme B. arrested and placed in police custody.
- Prosecutor announces suspect claimed he dropped Lyhanna at the pool; statements deemed inconsistent.
- Jérôme B. indicted for kidnapping and remanded in custody; refuses to speak before judge.
The family's state
Lyhanna's parents, Charly Rameau and Martial Bernard, are described by their lawyer as "annihilated but still fighting." They created missing-person posters using AI to show the outfit she wore: a black-and-white striped top, black shorts, and distinctive yellow One Piece socks.
They still have hope of finding her alive. That is all they have.
The prosecutor has stressed there is no evidence Lyhanna ran away or left voluntarily. The family's lawyer added that for parents, a child's disappearance is "about the worst thing that can happen."
