The Killer in the Shadows

6/6/2025

by M.P. Pellicer | Stranger Than Fiction Stories
In 1976, a maniac stalked the women in Nogent-sur-Oise a small town north of Paris. His first victim was claimed in 1969. During the intervening years the killer claimed 8 victims, and left them in run-down railway sidings and patches of bleak waste ground. The residents of the drab council flats were panicked. The press had dubbed the murderer "the killer in the shadows".

It took several years before the authorities realized it was one person killing several women.

Just beyond the railroad tracks, a chemical plant smothered the town in smoke. It left a dingy residue of gray and black on the egg box apartment buildings, and the surrounding brick houses. Women stopped walking in the town, and children were kept from the playground. Many people wanted to leave what they called "this cursed place."

The population noticed the killings took place when the wind was up and it was pouring rain. But most noticeable and strange, was the fact they took place only on nights of the full moon.

Detectives from Paris came to the town and interviewed 15,000 inhabitants of the town, which comprised most of the village which existed inside four square miles.

Inspector Christian Jacob said he was sure somebody knew who the killer was. He said the perpetrator was an intelligent man who picked victims that had no links between them. Their ages were from 20 to 49, and they all came from the same socio-economic background. The police believed he was meticulous, and watched his victims because the crimes were committed very quickly. No fingerprints were found at the scene and it was apparent, he wiped off doorknobs of the houses he entered.

They suspected he was ordinary looking which is why he was able to blend perfectly into the setting of the town. He seemed to be familiar with the rhythm of the community, such as when commuters left to Paris, and when they returned home at nightfall. During the seven years the crimes were committed, the crimes only occurred during the winter when the days were short, and nightfall came early.

The first attempted murder started in 1969, and the crimes would persist for 7 years

The first incident occurred in January 10, 1969 when Francoise Lecron was preparing her husband's dinner, and was shot in the shoulder by a .22 caliber bullet. It came in through the window of the kitchen. Francoise Lecron was the wife of the deputy director of the factory of Saint-Gobain de Rantigny. The police thought it was professional revenge.

Only four days later, Michele Louvet, 17, was shot in the stomach with a .22 caliber rifle, but like Francoise she survived. The case was not revealed in the press until after the murder of Therese Adam.

It seemed the perpetrator was insistent on taking a life since ten days later Therese Adam was killed. She was a 49 year old widow, who was shot in the head and stabbed with a knife in the neck. This happened as she exited her car near her home. She was found in a garbage-strewn yard.

Many years later it came to light, she had gone to the police with suspicions that someone was stalking her. The police dismissed her concerns and told her to get a dog. The German Shepherd she acquired was inside the house during the attack and could not help her.

Ten months passed, and on November, 16, 1969, the killer entered the home of Suzanne Merienne, 44, and her teenage daughter Micheline. When the girl arrived home from school, and opened the door to the home he pushed his way inside. The house was 600 feet from Mrs. Lecron’s house. He forced Micheline to tie up her mother. He dragged them through the garden to a muddy ground that bordered the railway. In a moment of inattention the girl escaped, but when she returned with police and the neighbors her mother has been shot in the temple, and died later in the hospital. Micheline told police the killer was tall, well built with cat eyes. He was a young man wearing a fisherman's cap and a scarf over his mouth. The sketch made of him was very general, and could have matched various men.

Not only was there now a witness who describe him, the perpetrator forgot his bag at the scene. Inside was twine, a sawed tool handle, 22-length rifle balls wrapped in newspaper, and a plaid napkin similar to factory canteen towels. This was not an uncommon items since there were 14 factories in Nogent-su-Oise, some of which employed 4,000 persons alone.

At some point police realized the murderer visited the local cemetery to care for the grave of a loved one

The police decided to display the contents in the town hall. Edouard Benko a resident of the town said, "When we arrived at the town hall, we recognized the bag and jokingly, we said: 'this is the bag of the grand', this referred to a friend named Marcel Barbeault. Benko then jokingly said that if there was a red and white checkered towel inside, it was him. They were surprised to find that indeed a towel matching this description was inside.

Benko would later say he and his colleagues had heavy suspicions, but they just didn't want to believe he was a killer.

Around this time, a suspect who was denounced by his wife as being the shadow killer, committed suicide by stepping in front of a train.

No doubt police and the townspeople believed there might have been some validity to the woman's suspicions, since three years would pass without another murder.

February 6, 1973, Annick Delisle, 29, failed to come home from work. Her husband grew worried, and went to the neighbors and eventually the police. Her body was found in a grove, stripped naked and her face was mutilated. She received a violent blow to the head, however she was not shot. Her purse had been stolen, but many did not believe the same killer has returned.

On May 28, 1873 Mauricette Van Hyfte, 22, and Eugene Stephan, 24, went to the parking lot of the Laigneville Cemetery for a private moment. A man suddenly approached the vehicle and shot Eugene in the head. Mauricette tried to escape but was shot and killed as well.

The bodies were found the next day in the car. Mauricette was naked and positioned in a way that was described as "obscene" by the police. Her purse was gone.

The police now suspected the same killer has returned, and this incident was not premeditated, and most likely the couple interrupted something he was doing, and he took the opportunity to kill them.

Marcel Barbeault is finally arrested in 1976 for the murders

Six months went by, and on January 8, 1974, Josette Routier, 29, returned home after working all day at a bank. She lives in a 2-bedroom, ground apartment. Unbeknownst to her killer has gained entrance already and had hid behind a curtain.

Three days later she's found by a neighbor. Josette is stripped, kneeling, forehead placed on the ground. She's been shot several time with .22 caliber bullets. Her handbag has been stolen. Tracks of size 42 boot are found in the house.

The police now detected a pattern or preference the murderer had. The women were similar in appearance and were killed within a 3 mile perimeter. The women in the small town panicked, and dyed their hair blonde since all the victims were brunettes. Other families moved, and the real estate market was badly affected.

Inspector Daniel Neveu took over the case in September, 1974. He was the first one to establish the killer's M.O., and developed a profile for him. By studying the various murders he deduces the killer is also a thief. The police then list all the thieves in the area.

Like in prior instances the killer sensed when he was in danger of being caught, and the murders stopped.

It's November 26, 1975 and almost two years have passed since the murder of Josette Routier. Julia Goncalves, 25, would leave her home at 6 a.m. to reach the railway station and take a train to work. Her body was found the next day in a stream that ran through the park. She had been shot in the head, stripped, and her purse and watch were gone.

The police conducted extensive interviews throughout the town.

In January, 1976, Francoise Jakubowska, 20, was murdered near the railway station. She was a secretary who worked in Paris. While 70 commuters stood on the platform waiting for the morning train he dragged her to a garbage strewn yard behind the railway station, between a carpentry shop and 12-room hotel. She was found partly stripped up to her waist and with a .22-caliber bullet in her head. She had been stabbed several times and her purse was stolen.

Madame Sollein, France's best known astrologist foretold the killer would be caught after his 13th crime, which meant he had to go through 5 more women.

Nine months later, an anonymous phone call finally pointed the police in the right direction. The killer was described as: "aged 35, 1.80 cm tall, married to a blonde, with two children, no driving license. He served in Algeria, has practiced boxing and worked at the Rivière."

Also by now, the police determined that a similar bullet to those used in the murder, were found at the Laigneville Cemetery. Inspector Neveu concluded the killer frequented the cemetery either because he worked there, or to maintain the gravesite of a loved one. He requested the identification of the 650 graves in the cemetery. He cross-referenced to their list of 60 suspects, and reduced the number to 12.

Number three on the list was Marcel Barbeault. He was 35 years old, married, has two children and was a tuner at the Saint-Gobain factory. He did not have a violent background, however he was known to the police for a series of burglaries. He was arrested and sentenced to 18 months in prison that was eventually suspended. His mother was buried at Laigneville Cemetery. His general physical description matched the one given by the witnesses.

Barbeault married in 1964, and to all appearances led a normal life

The police visited Barbeault on December 14, 1976, and found a variety of stolen objects inside the home. In the cellar they found a dagger, a raincoat, gloves, caps and a .22 caliber rifle with a sawed off barrel. It also had a silencer. Barbeault was arrested when he arrived at home with his children's Christmas gifts.

While in custody, his schedule was studied. He didn't have an alibi for any of the crimes. He lied to his wife about working when he was on vacation. Micheline Merienne, viewed him from behind a two-way window and recognized his eyes..

A match was made between the rifle used to kill Julia Goncalves and Francoise Jakubowska, and the one found in the cellar. He denied he killed the women, and said he found the rifle behind a grave in the cemetery.

The rifle used to kill Josette Routier and the couple in the cemetery was not found. Police believed this one was stolen by Barbeault during one of his burglaries. The man who had reported the theft of his rifle, used to shoot at a target in his garden. The police scoured the land looking for old cartridges, some were found and they were a match for the ones found at both crime scenes. Barbeault was charged with three new murders.

A match was never found for the weapon used in the murder of Therese Adam, Suzanne Merienne and Annick Delisle.

Barbeault was charged in total with five murders and sixteen robberies.

In June 1981, Mitterand, France’s first socialist president was opposed to capital punishment. The timing on this saved Marcel Barbeault from a death sentence. Instead he was given a life sentence after the jury deliberated for 19 hours. The death penalty was still on the statute books, but it seemed that when one of the jurors suffered an epileptic fit the jury decided on life imprisonment.

Throughout the trial Barbeault was quiet, and only stated he was innocent, and he was the 9th victim of the killer of the Oise.

Police theorized the death of Barbeault's mother precipitated his violent streak of killing women.

Who Was Marcel Barbeault

Marcel Barbeault was the oldest son born to Lucien Barbeault (1920-1997) who worked as a steam locomotive conductor, and a mother Micheline (nee Catelle) who worked in the textile industry. He had three brothers and a sister. He quit school at young age, and by the time he was 14 years old he worked as a riveter.

He joined the army and was mobilized in December, 1960 for the Algerian War to work as a stretcher bearer. Upon his return he went back to factory work, and practiced boxing and judo. He tried to become a paratrooper or gendarme but he failed the tests 8 times, since he suffered from vertigo.

He married Josiane in 1964, and two years later they had their first son Patrice, and then Laurent in 1972.

In 1968, his mother Micheline who he loved very much died from a painful bout with breast cancer. She died in his arms. In 1971, a brother Jean-Louis died in a road accident, and on February 12, 1974, another brother committed suicide by throwing himself under a train under disturbing circumstances.

Prior to his mother's death, he was a petty thief who on occasion would steal weapons when he drove his moped to work. The death of his mother and later his brothers appeared to be the trigger of his descent into violence.

Some theorized that his mother’s double mastectomy before her death was tied into the sexual way he treated his victims’ bodies.

A psychological profile was made of Barbeault. Like other French serial killers he was married, a good father and husband. He was well liked by everyone.

The murder of Josette Routier marked a very clear turning point in his habits. The more he killed, the more apparent the sexual component became. He would then stab them after posing them in sexual positions. The experts saw it as a ritual and simple staging. No rape ever occurred. The wounds to the stomach and chest, as well stripping the victims testified a will to hurt the women A rape by proxy that was unsuccessful. He would take items that were valuable to the victim like photos. It was a type of psychic rape since he took items that were intimate to them. Many years later the detectives revealed that he had possibly penetrated the women with the weapon he used to kill them.

After an examination, doctors never found any serious dysfunction in his Barbeault's behavior or demeanor to explain his murderous bent.

Another doctor said: "This is a morbid, sadistic subject experiencing the irresistible need of a brutal and criminal domination, compensatory to its impotence."

As of May, 2025 Marcel Barbeault remains incarcerated in the central prison of Saint-Maur in Indre, and is employed as the prison librarian. He is now in his mid-80s.