Inass Touloub trial shows how forensic evidence revived a 39-year-old case
At the Blois assize court, medical evidence and a DNA breakthrough frame a difficult trial in which both accused parents deny responsibility.
The trial over the 1987 death of four-year-old Inass Touloub has reached its forensic-evidence phase at the Loir-et-Cher assize court in Blois. Her mother is accused of torture and acts of barbarity causing death without intent to kill; her father is accused of complicity. Both deny responsibility and remain presumed innocent unless convicted.
AFP reported that a forensic doctor presented the court with the injuries recorded when the child was found beside the A10 motorway. The hearing was suspended on Wednesday afternoon after the mother became unwell during the presentation of post-mortem photographs. WHIF is not reproducing the images or detailed descriptions, which are unnecessary to explain the procedure.
How a DNA match reopened the investigation
The passage of time is central to the case. Inass was unidentified for three decades. Le Monde reports that a DNA profile entered into France's national database after an unrelated 2017 incident matched genetic material preserved from the original investigation. Investigators were then able to identify the child and trace her family before the parents were arrested in 2018.
That sequence shows why cold-case work depends on preservation as much as new technology. Samples collected before modern databases existed can acquire evidential value years later, but a genetic link does not by itself determine who committed an alleged act. The trial must examine medical findings, family testimony, earlier statements and the competing accounts of the accused.
Privacy inside a public trial
La Dépêche's courtroom reporting says the proceedings are scheduled to continue through 18 November. Some testimony from surviving family members is being heard behind closed doors, a decision made to protect them. Their privacy should not be displaced by the public interest in a long-unsolved case, and WHIF will not identify or speculate about them.
The age and health of the accused have also affected the timetable. AFP reported that an additional medical assessment of the father was expected by Friday. A health assessment concerns the conduct of proceedings; it does not resolve guilt, excuse alleged conduct or predetermine the court's final decision.
Evidence is not a verdict
The verified development is a trial testing old evidence under present-day criminal procedure, not a solved story awaiting formal confirmation. Reporting must distinguish allegations, expert evidence and judicial findings. Until the verdict, the case illustrates both the power of preserved forensic material and the limits of treating any single scientific result as a substitute for the court's full assessment.
Sources & context
Reporting and reference material used for this article. Context sources do not independently confirm every news claim.
- AFP via Boursorama ↗Court reporting, published 4 November 2026: forensic testimony, suspension of the hearing and additional health assessment.
- Le Monde ↗Independent case history, published 1 November and updated 2 November 2026: identification through preserved DNA and the path to trial.
- La Dépêche du Midi ↗Independent courtroom reporting, published and updated 4 November 2026: trial schedule, defendants' denials and closed family testimony.
Written for WHIF from the linked material. This article does not claim on-the-ground reporting. Our editorial standards.