House of Terror: The Dupont de Ligonnès Family Massacre

Well, it was initially theorized that all the victims were shot and killed in their own beds.However,there was no trace of any blood in their bedrooms,nor were there any traces of blood in the family home in general.Even more bizarre was that forensic teams found no trace of any DNA fingerprints or any fibers of any kind on the bodies or on the black bin bags that were found inside the grave.Which begs the question of whether or not someone,or some people super experienced were actually involved.Like,were the family assassinated?

Welcome to the compendium,an assembly of veil privilege,silenced family shame,and a desperate descent into an unforgivable deed.

Adam Cox: 1:08

What

Kyle Risi: 1:10

I'm intrigued.For those of you tuning in for the very first time,I'm your host,Kyle Risi.I am the one who has no reason to worry about bringing shame onto my family name because yeah,I did that at Easter.

Adam Cox: 1:23

I remember.and I'm your co-host Adam Cox,and I'm the one whose family warned me about Kyle.And his family,but hey,he makes a nice pizza.

Kyle Risi: 1:32

is that all?I'm good for making pizza.Yeah.You do a good pizza.I can't help but notice,but that's not what I wrote on the,original script.You deliberately misstep it out.You said

Adam Cox: 1:41

I could.go off peace.

Kyle Risi: 1:43

That's fine.Don't worry.So,Adam,how did you find last week's episode on the Dyatlov pass incident?

Adam Cox: 1:48

Last week's episode was,well,yeah,such a strange story.What happened to those Russians?

Kyle Risi: 1:54

It's crazy,isn't it?How all of them can just end up dead.It's just heartbreaking.Yeah.It's so mysterious considering after all these years that it's still not quite solved.People don't know exactly what happened.I mean,logic normally is the way to go when it comes to these things.Right?What's the most plausible,logical thing that happened?

Adam Cox: 2:12

Yeah.I liked all the theories and I guess speculation and I guess the different.Circumstances of what might have caused their death.Mm-hmm.But then when you do add logic,it kind of took away the fun just a little bit.It does.Not that it's a fun story,

Kyle Risi: 2:26

I think a lot of these stories people don't always want to accept the most logical answer anyway,because it takes away from that mystique or that kind of,that mystery of it all.I mean,a lot of the families that,lost loved ones on that expedition refused to believe that it was a kind of,a mini avalanche,that it wiped them out.But yeah,the reality is it's probably that.I did like the fact that they paid homage to the Yeti by trying to stage a random photograph on their found camera footage.So that was quite cute,I think.Mm.So what have you got for me this week?any news?

Adam Cox: 3:03

Um,I think you already knew about this anyway,or at least what the South Koreans do when they celebrate a new birthday or their age.

Kyle Risi: 3:12

No,go on.

Adam Cox: 3:13

So they class their age differently to how the rest of the world.

Kyle Risi: 3:17

Am I correct in thinking that,so for example,if you were born hypothetically on December the first2023,you will be technically one because you don't stop from zero.You saw from one and your age.Then also increments up by one year.On January the first.So in January the first,you'll then be two.

Adam Cox: 3:39

That's it.Yes.So they class you are nine months as part of being alive when you are Yeah.In the womb.So you come out as one,and then on January the first,that's when you turn a different age.So if you were to buy alcohol,for example mm-hmm.I think it's the legal age.There is like19.It would be on the1st of January that year.You wouldn't have to wait until October whenever your birthday was.Oh.Why did they do it like that?I don't know.I,I think they kind of use both methods.The international way,which everyone else does.They call it the international way and then their way.So on legal documents,I think they put,Yeah.the actual birth date is when they trigger their age.I see.But apparently coming into effect this week,they're gonna just change it and everyone is gonna go to the international way,which means people are getting younger in South Korea.Oh,nice.there's a few people that are just like really excited because they're like,oh,I'm,I was approaching my third years,but now I'm only28.Um,so you can work out your Korean age?Mm-hmm.So chances are you're gonna be older and to work out what that age is.Mm-hmm.You take this year,Plus one.Mm-hmm.So2023plus1,20,24.Mm-hmm.Minus the year that you were born.Mm-hmm.And then that will give you your Korean age,which is for me would be37.So you'd be two years older.That does feel like a complicated way of just adding two years,to

Kyle Risi: 4:57

be honest.Yeah,it does.Yeah.But hey,good for Koreans are getting younger,right?Yeah.They're living longer according to censuses.Yeah..This week,I've got a couple things actually.I found this footage of this killer whale,aka and orca.That was circling around a boat,just off the coast of Spain,and it seemed to be trying to capture the attention mm-hmm.Of the people on the boat.very recently there'd been a spat of instances where orcas were physically attacking.Yeah.The boats

Adam Cox: 5:30

known to be quite dangerous,aren't

Kyle Risi: 5:32

they?Yeah.So I imagine that these people probably thought something similar that mm-hmm.They were just under attack.But what was happening was the killer whale,or,and it was a young killer whale like that was trying to get them to follow him.Mm-hmm.Like,like Lassie,right?What is it?Boy,what is it?Someone's fell down the water hole.Someone's fallen down the water well?Well,pretty much something very similar did happen.So they end up following it.It ended up leading them back to essentially their pod where the rest of their family was.And what they discovered was that the mother had been caught just below the surface,and she couldn't get unstuck.Oh,okay.So the people on the boat went down and they freed her.Then a whole new other pod arrived and they were circling around the boat in celebration.And then in that moment the mother swam all the way down to the,the ocean floor,and then brought up a manta ray as a gift Oh wow.For the people on the boat.Wow.So

Adam Cox: 6:25

they are really that intelligent in just the,

Kyle Risi: 6:28

I think this really illustrates that they are really,because they've sent off a young orca to go find help.He found help,he brought people back.And they said,thank you.Wow.They said,thank you.Isn't that just incredible?What a story.

Adam Cox: 6:41

I love human nature when it's heartwarming like that.

Kyle Risi: 6:43

Mm-hmm.Equally,it is also interesting how there has been a spat of orcas deliberately attacking ships.They're able to understand the abilities that human beings have,and if they were attacking humans trying to knock over the boats and stuff mm-hmm.They must have an understanding that humans are bad or they've done something bad to them.True.But they also understand that actually humans are capable of being able to help them out in certain situations.Like being able to kind of de-tangle them from Yeah,they've got thumbs net.Yeah.They're like,oh,they can help them.They know that we have thumbs.Mm.I think that's real testament to their intelligence and their ability to be able to communicate.

Adam Cox: 7:21

They can spot a pair of thumbs a mile away.Yeah.I just thought that was

Kyle Risi: 7:25

brilliant.That's very cool.The other story that I've got is,uh,this guy was working out at a gym and this woman at the gym called this guy out for staring at her,called him a creep,and then reported him to the main desk.And they approached him to kick him out.And he was like,what are you talking about?And he was like,you can't just go around.Staring at other people in the gym.It's creepy,it's gross.This is supposed to be a safe space.And he was like,can you not see that I have a walking stick and I'm blind,registered blind?And they were like,it doesn't matter.You can't go around staring at people in the gym.And he was like,I am blind.And yeah,they kicked him out.That's ridiculous.Isn't that meant?

Adam Cox: 8:10

So are they thinking,oh yeah,are you really blind or are they just oh,you just can't st that is terrible.If he is have Novis vision whatsoever,they've kicked this man out purely because he's,you know,his face is facing a certain direction.

Kyle Risi: 8:24

Yeah.That's crazy.And the thing is though,he probably wasn't100%blind,but that doesn't matter.I don't have2020vision.My vision's pretty good for someone who wears glasses,but when I don't have my glasses on,I could be staring into the distance and I,I could be staring someone right in the face and not know that I'm doing it.Mm-hmm.So this guy's registered blind.He has a walking stick.He,he was kicked out for staring at people in the gym.I just think that's just hilarious.That was poor guy.What a world we live in.Mm.You are listening to the compendium and Assembly of fascinating and intriguing things.We are a weekly podcast where I,Kyle Risi,tell Adam my ever curious,and unruffled critical host,all about a topic that I think you'll find both fascinating and intriguing.Wow,you're

Adam Cox: 9:12

really putting that thesaurus to good use,aren't you?

Kyle Risi: 9:15

Well,I'm trying,you know,I'm trying to paint a nice,colorful story for our listeners,and you are just ruining it.

Adam Cox: 9:20

Well,I do like the fact that you described me as unruffled.I'm not quite sure what that means,but,hey,

Kyle Risi: 9:25

I don't know what unruffled means.I just was like,highlight thesaurus,and that's what I came up

Adam Cox: 9:31

with.Fine.Well,okay,so moving on.What have you got for us today?

Kyle Risi: 9:36

So in today's episode of the Compendium,I'm gonna be telling you about the chilling and bizarre murders of an old French aristocratic family known as the DuPont doula goner family back in April of2011.Now,their sudden disappearance raised many eyebrows and sparked numerous wild rumors at the time.It was actually claimed that the entire family was whisked away in place under witness protection owing to their ties with the formidable United States Drug Enforcement Agency.Have you ever heard of this story before?

Adam Cox: 10:08

No.Not at a,not a single

10:10

bit,

Kyle Risi: 10:10

I don't think.What do you think?You intrigued by it?

Adam Cox: 10:13

I am,yes.

Kyle Risi: 10:14

Hence why I'm here.You have no choice to be here.You're on the payroll.Adam.

Adam Cox: 10:20

I wish there was pay.

Kyle Risi: 10:23

God.That's like a stab to my heart.So our story starts at number55,Robert Schumann Boulevard in the city of Nantes in Western France.And this is the home to the DuPont De Legos family,who I'll be referring to as the DuPont family.From here on in now,the DuPonts consisted of a mother,a father,the their four children and two black labradors.Before we

Adam Cox: 10:50

continue,can I just say something?Go on then.your pronunciation of these French names is pretty good.And then I just happened to glance across the,to the computer screen and I can see you have,spelled out these names of places and people phonetically.

Kyle Risi: 11:05

It's the only way that I can make this work.I've been practicing really hard this week to make sure I don't offend anyone.

Adam Cox: 11:11

there's a good chance,actually there's maybe not,there's not a good chance that you won't offend anyone.but,there's a good chance you might get the names right.

Kyle Risi: 11:17

Well done.Possibly.Possibly.We'll see,as I've been practicing today's scripts,I did find myself veering off into all sorts of different pronunciations.So I will try to stay on track.I'm

Adam Cox: 11:28

expecting some Joey Trini French.

Kyle Risi: 11:33

Right,back to the story,Adam.Sorry.God,I was trying to set a mood and you just spoiled it.You do this every week.Just kidding.So by all accounts,the DuPont family appeared to be a completely normal upper middle class family.They come from a respectable background and were actively involved in the local community.They were,by far not the type of people to get involved in any sort of illicit activities,nor did they break the law.However,in2011,this all changed when one of the most horrific crimes ever to be committed in France took place number55,Robert Schumann Boulevard became known as the House of Terror.Okay.Can I have a bit more of

Adam Cox: 12:17

a,I was,I was waiting for the next bit of that sentence.

Kyle Risi: 12:20

Sorry.That's it.That's the sentence.It's the end of the story.And that's the story of...

Adam Cox: 12:24

oh,oh,that's felt,uh,but House of Terror.Mm-hmm,something horrific must have happened here

Kyle Risi: 12:32

so Xavier DuPont is the head of the family,and he is a50year old count who is descendant from an old French aristocratic lineage.Now Xavier is a well-respected and celebrated salesman who had achieved some success across various businesses specifically one that specialized in enabling restaurants across the US to gather instant feedback from patrons who were visiting the restaurant and about their experience.Okay.Now,Xavier's48year old wife on,yeah who he first met in1980,worked at a Catholic school and was known for her devotion to the Catholic faith,attending mass every single Sunday and running a Bible study group.Now,Xavier and Ona had a short-lived relationship early on in the1980s,which abruptly ended when Xavier decided to go traveling around the world when he returned back to his hometown in Versailles.A year later.Xavier finds that aye had fallen pregnant with her first son,Arthur.Despite being frowned upon Xavier decides that he's gonna marry Aye and agrees to raise Arthur as his own.So the couple get married in1991.Oh,so that's No,his son,it's not his son.

Adam Cox: 13:43

No,that's what I was just thinking.Yeah.Wow.That's really nice of him to do that.

Kyle Risi: 13:46

Yeah.But not so nice of her to do that when she's supposed to be a good Catholic girl.Not that I'm judging,I don't care.Yeah,fair point.So between them they have three more children.The first is of course,Arthur Nicholas being the eldest.he was20years old and working part-time at a pizzeria while attending a private Catholic college where he was studying it.Mm-hmm.Their second son,Thomas,was18years old and he was studying musicology with the couple's only daughters,16year old Anne being a grade year11student at a private Catholic high school.Anne also spent some of the time modeling for various male order catalogs and things like that.Okay.Now,the youngest of the family was13year old Benoit,who also attended the same high school as his sister,and like his brother Thomas,had a huge passion for music,especially the drums.Now life pretty much carried on as normal with both parents working their respective jobs and their children attending the various educational institutions.Nothing at the time appears to be out of the ordinary.That was until the afternoon of the11th of April,2011where neighbors began to grow concern for the DuPont family.As their house was standing there eerily silent.Their home was this kind of upscale city townhouse with an impressive kind of white facade.Imagine like a London townhouse.Mm-hmm.It had blue shutters and small courtyard,oddly,the house had been all shuttered up for several days now,which for the DuPont family was something completely out of the ordinary.Even when the family went on holiday,they never closed the window shutters.

Adam Cox: 15:25

I was just about to say,or could they have been away,but,mm,no,

Kyle Risi: 15:28

you've covered that.So a neighbor also noticed a note had been taped to the front door,asking the postman not to deliver any more posts to the property and instead to return all posts back to sender.That's weird.That is strange,isn't it?Mm-hmm.Now neighbors felt that this in itself was very strange.And after a couple days of no movement within the property,neighbors decided to contact authorities who subsequently arrived at the residence to see what was going on.And upon their arrival at the home on the13th of April,local police officers found that the door was locked and nobody answered the door.As a result,a locksmith was contacted to change the locks and provide entry to the police.But upon entering,nothing appeared to have been out of place other than all of the beds had been stripped,and some of the closets had been left open.Police concluded that the family had simply just left the house on their own accord,and therefore there was no need for a formal investigation.

Adam Cox: 16:28

The way you say that sounds like they're maybe left in a hurry.Mm-hmm.That,but why strip the beds?Yeah.That's quite an odd,

Kyle Risi: 16:36

odd thing to do.the thing is that the house is also completely spotless as well.yes,it might seem that they're left in a hurry.That seems to be the impression that's been left,and hence why the police had come to that conclusion.However,all that one of the family cars were all still parked in the usual spots around the immediate area.The car that was missing,however,was a Citrin c5,which would've been way too small to accommodate two adults,four children,two lab doors,as well as all the belongings that were seemingly taken from the house.Okay.There was just no way that they all traveled in the same vehicle.Okay.That's weird.Mm-hmm.Now,in the days that followed,a number of typed letters were received by friends and relatives of the family alleging to be from Xavier and Onne.Okay.Now these letters basically explained their absence,but what was written in the letters was truly baffling to everyone.The eight page long letters claimed that Xavier was a spy for the DEA in the United States,and that the entire family would be going away for a few years.The letters explained that Zavier Incognito status had been exposed,and so he and his family had to flee the country as they would be potentially be in danger.Mm-hmm.If they decided to stay in France.Now the letters also spoke of changing their identities under the Witness Protection Program and reiterated that they probably wouldn't have any contact with their extended family and friends at all in the near future.Now,Zavier claims that both Black Labradors,had been placed in a new home together.The letter also detailed a number of tasks for several of the family members and friends to carry out mainly on what to do with their affairs,their property,et cetera.Now,Zavier also asked each recipient to tell people that the family had moved to Australia following a job transfer,and to keep what they'd been told in this letter,strictly secret.Letters of a similar nature.Were also sent to Anne and Benoit schools,as well as Arne's Workplace and the landlords of both Thomas and Arthur's college accommodation.Okay.Really bizarre,isn't it?Yeah.

Adam Cox: 18:54

If one of my family sent me an eight page letter,uh,yeah,don't expect to hear from me for a while,but can you just like sort out all my belongings or whatever.Mm-hmm.Um,you know,close down my energy account.That'd be very weird.I dunno if I would buy that.

Kyle Risi: 19:07

But the bizarre thing is,is that initially those who were sent the letters didn't really think too much of it.After all,the idea of Xavier being an eccentric individual working for the DEA genuinely seemed plausible to some family members.

Adam Cox: 19:23

Okay.

Kyle Risi: 19:23

Nobody really doubted it.Mm-hmm.Everyone except for Arne's family,they were left completely puzzled by the letters exactly like you would be if your family sent you those letters.And subsequently,they decided to send the letters to the district attorney in New Orleans that's in the States.Mm-hmm.Arne's family found it beyond strange that the family simply just got up and left France without saying a single thing.So on April the15th,2011,four days after neighbors initially contacted authorities with their concerns,please return back to number55,Robert Schumann Boulevard,to conduct further searches of the property.During their search they found that many of the photo frames within the house had been emptied of their photographs.But other than that,again,nothing suspicious was found inside the home at all.

Adam Cox: 20:17

Have they done anything forensic at this point,or did they not have any like reason to do that?

Kyle Risi: 20:22

They start to do some forensics and they still reach several dead ends and I'll explain why in a second because it gets a little bit juicy.Okay.So they do carry out three further searches of the place on the18th,the19th,and the20th of April.After again,on Ya's family insist that something was wrong.The reason for this is because when they contacted the district attorney in New Orleans,they came back and said,yeah,we've never heard of Zavier or his family before.Now,could that be because he's in the witness protection,so they have to deny that he even existed or did he just not exist at all?I mean,

Adam Cox: 21:05

it would be pretty bad if they went Oh yeah.Him.Yeah,no,he is just down the road.If he wasn't witness protection.Exactly.

Kyle Risi: 21:11

A sixth search of the property was conducted on the21st of April,which was the same day that a public appeal was launched to help with the whereabouts of the family.It was during this search that police find something that would end up shocking the entire country of France.Whilst investigating the exterior of the property,police uncovered a number of taped up bin bags buried in a grave underneath a terrace of the house.Upon investigating the find,they discovered four sets of human remains and two sets of animal remains.Oh,no.What they had found was the bodies of Anya and three of her four children,Arthur Anne,and Benoit,along with the two black Labradors,18year old Thomas,however,was buried in a separate grave,close by,investigate,is firmly believed that Thomas was killed sometime after his mother and his siblings.

Adam Cox: 22:11

What happened?So they were in bin bags?

Kyle Risi: 22:13

So bizarrely,alongside each body were several religious items like candles,crucifixes,and effigies of the Virgin Mary,which seems to suggest that this was some sort of ritual,kind of burial and sacrifice or something.I think it was more religious in in origin rather than sacrificing.Okay.It's clear that there was some kind of emotional connection between the victims and the perpetrator.For the perpetrator to deliberately bury them with these items.Because whoever buried the bodies,he had clearly wanted them to have a religious burial of some sort.

Adam Cox: 22:50

Well,it sounds like it's gonna be zaa at this point.

Kyle Risi: 22:52

Well,Zaa was not amongst the victims found under the terrace.Mm-hmm.So police scoured the house and surrounding area looking for him.However,he was nowhere to be found.And from that moment on,Zavier was the police's prime subject for his family's murder.

Adam Cox: 23:09

Well,it makes sense at the moment.Mm-hmm.

Kyle Risi: 23:12

Who else would it be?Can you imagine murdering your whole family if he indeed did it?We don't know at this point.

Adam Cox: 23:18

Well,yeah,I,I can't,I can't even imagine that.

Kyle Risi: 23:21

So on the10th of May,2011,a warrant was issued for Xavier's arrest,after which the media dubbed the Schumann Boulevard property as the House of Terror.Mm-hmm.Now,As the media storm ensued,friends and family of the DuPonts were all left puzzled.They couldn't see how this typical family man could have committed such heinous crimes against his family,especially since Xavier spent so much of his time,like helping others.Mm-hmm.They were really super devout.They were really involved in the community and they were from like aristocratic kind of lineages.The family name was extremely important to him.

Adam Cox: 24:02

yeah,so I guess he's given no signs up until this point anyone that he would ever,any,I'm guessing he's not a violent man,he's just a normal.Bloke.

Kyle Risi: 24:12

That's it.So why would he end up murdering his entire family,essentially wiping out his entire name?Mm-hmm.That has spanned for so many generations.Mm-hmm.It just doesn't make any sense.Did he actually do this is the question.Okay.So Zavier also had never been in any trouble with the law,nor did he have any criminal connections whatsoever.Many people close to the family struggled to believe that Xavier could have murdered and buried his family in the backyard of the home,including his mother and sister.Because according to them,Xavier had a severe back issue,and that caused him a huge amount of pain.Now,where the bodies were buried in the hole beneath the terrace,it was very kind of low down roughly around about four feet in height.So if Zavier had attempted to bury his family there,It would've caused him an excessive amount of pain bending over like that.

Adam Cox: 25:07

That is a lot of people to bury.Mm-hmm.So yeah,if you've got any kind of condition like that,I struggle to dig one foot hole,let alone four foot to fit,you know,bodies.

Kyle Risi: 25:19

Well,I mean,that reassures me massively that you're not gonna turn on me.

Adam Cox: 25:23

It'll be a shallow grave if anything happens.

Kyle Risi: 25:25

Oh god dammit.So his mother and sister believe that the bodies in the backyard might not have even been the bodies of the family at all and basically they alleged that the descriptions of each body that was given in the autopsy was just not accurate at all.They were claiming that the autopsies were falsified and claimed that there was some kind of coverup.

Adam Cox: 25:46

So would anyone had to identify the remains?Or would they just assumed,oh,this is the mum and the

Kyle Risi: 25:53

three?It's an interesting question because they were also covered in lime.Right,Which is supposed to speed up the decomposition of the bodies.Now maybe it,it was not possible to do a body identification.

Adam Cox: 26:05

So they're going off the postmortem results or the descriptions and that's what's going,or that doesn't sound like.That's it.You know?

Kyle Risi: 26:13

Thing is though,I think that the bodies are of the family possibly.So the question is,was there a degree of credibility to the letters apparently sent by Xavier?Did the family flee the country and maybe fake their own deaths?Or did someone help them fake their own deaths by planting these bodies?I think that's essentially what his family were asserting,right?Mm-hmm.It's better that than having to admit that your son was capable of killing his entire family.Yes.The loss of his line.Yeah.I guess

Adam Cox: 26:40

innocent until proven guilty,like you actually spoken to him.Mm-hmm.And everything like that.

Kyle Risi: 26:44

Yeah.He is missing at this point.to me it seems all very unlikely the autopsies were conducted on the family and it was discovered that traces of sleeping pills were found in all four of the children's systems.No sleeping pills were found in Arne's system,likely because she uses like a sleep apnea machine during the night.However,the machine was switched off around about the3rd of April in the early hours of the morning,she was likely the first one of the family to die.Okay.The autopsy reports also revealed details about how each member of the family was also killed.They were shot with two bullets to the head,using a0.22long rifle.It just so happens that this exact weapon had been a family heirloom,which had been passed down to Zavier from his father just three weeks prior to the family being murdered in March.Really?So the case is stacking up against him,isn't it?Yeah.When you've,yeah.Okay.Right.Still missing.He's now got this murder weapon that he inherited just three weeks prior.Where is the weapon as well?They don't have it.That's quite a quick

Adam Cox: 27:51

turnaround.Cause I wonder.If it is him at this stage,three weeks to all of a sudden go,right,I've got,I've now got a gun.

Kyle Risi: 27:58

Yeah.Well,it was initially theorized that all the victims were shot and killed in their own beds.However,there was no trace of any blood in their bedrooms,nor were there any traces of blood in the family home in general.Even more bizarre was that forensic teams found no trace of any DNA fingerprints or any fibers of any kind on the bodies or on the black bin bags that were found inside the grave.Which begs the question of whether or not someone,or some people super experienced were actually involved.were the family assassinated and Xavier was taken.Yeah.Cause you'd expect y

Adam Cox: 28:40

Yeah,that seems so strange.Mm-hmm.So they would've had to be in some kind of forensic suit or whatever to basically not leave any DNA

Kyle Risi: 28:48

like a hazmat suit.Yes.Yeah.Like that.Interesting.There was absolutely no evidence to indicate that Zavier was involved in the murders of his family at all at this point,and so again,they just continue to hit dead end after dead end in their investigation.So investigators decide to try a different avenue.Instead of looking for forensic evidence,they decide to take a harder look into the lives of the family themselves.And what they discovered was both fascinating and intriguing.Oh,nice.I see what you did there.It's always fun when you include the name of the show inside the episode itself.So on the face of it,Xavier appeared to have a perfect work and family life,but this was not actually true.Although portrayed as a successful businessman,he was actually struggling and he had been for many years.In the early two thousands,the family briefly relocated to Florida where Xavier began.A new business aiming to help foreigners with like legal processes and admin in the usa.But unfortunately that didn't work out as he had hoped.And Zavier had invested pretty much all of his money into that business,which resulted in the family having to return back to France,with very little money to the name.Mm-hmm.As the years went by,Zavier,finances continued to spiral downhill even more.He claimed to own a number of other very successful businesses however,these companies were also all hemorrhaging money.Now Zavier knew that these businesses would eventually go bust.As a result,he was bound to lose literally everything.Oh wow.

Adam Cox: 30:22

So he is got some skeletons in the closet,but he's kind of keeping up appearances.

Kyle Risi: 30:26

Yeah.Now,the fact that he was a French nobility and had account title meant that for him to lose everything would be catastrophic for both his reputation and of course for his families.Right now,because of his family's name and former success,xavier was an extremely proud individual,and to admit to his family that he was a failure was just not something that he was willing or even wanted to do.Mm-hmm.Now,before his father died,Xavier's life was already growing more and more complicated.His marriage was steadily deteriorating with both partners,feeling the strain on their financial situation and the pressure of their social status.Zavier decided to begin having an affair with a woman called Catherine,who was a successful businesswoman in her own right.As Javier's financial situation worsened,he turned to Catherine for a loan of50,000Euros,which she agreed to.As time went on,rather than paying her back,Zavier asked Catherine for even more money,and when she then refused,she insisted that he pay back the original loan,which only added more pressure to their illicit relationship.

Adam Cox: 31:33

Wow.So how long was he having this affair for,

Kyle Risi: 31:36

it sounds like?For quite some time.Okay.I think a few years.Mm-hmm.now,Zaia was not only grappling with the immediate collapse of his business empire,but also the potential exposure of this affair.Arne at the time was also not fully faithful.She'd become really close to one of Xavier's closest friends who provided ane with like an emotional outlet.While their relationship was not sexual at all,they did share long phone calls and various messages together.Now in the midst of their troubles,Zavier and Ane decided to give the marriage another chance for the sake of the family and for their shared history.They thought it was kind of like something that was worth fighting for sure.They got a family.I think from what I read as well,that it was more around family shame cuz of their family name.Right,

Adam Cox: 32:23

okay.So they didn't want like affairs or things like that getting out and tainting the family name is all about

Kyle Risi: 32:31

keeping correct because remember,Zevier was the one who was having the affair.She was just confiding with another person.Right now,the reason why I think it was more about the family name is because an incredibly poignant letter.Was sent to family members,where ye essentially shoulders,the blame for all of the marital problems,considering she didn't have an affair.She wrote about her own failings and her inability to meet his expectations.Poor woman.And her belief that she was the root cause of all of the issues.

Adam Cox: 33:04

But that's not on her.That's not on her to feel like it takes two to tango.

Kyle Risi: 33:10

True,very true.But it seems like if they were gonna give it a go,then she was,she's gonna need to be the one to take the blame.I guess that's just my subjective opinion.Okay.Because why would she take the blame for it?Why else if it wasn't.For the family,cuz I know that he was so completely obsessed with his family and mm-hmm.And honor and,and pride and things like that.So..

Adam Cox: 33:31

And if he's the main breadwinner as well.And trying to provide That's right.Maybe she made that sacrifice for

Kyle Risi: 33:37

the,yeah.So as the financial problems continued to mount for Zabi app,another devastating blow came when Catherine decided to sue him for the money that she had lent him during their time together.She had hoped that,of course,the money would help Xavier stabilize his businesses.But as the months turned into years without any repayment,her hope obviously turned into frustration and finally resentment.Mm-hmm.So Catherine decides that she's going to sue Zavier,which many believe that this as well as the prospect of public shame,may have been the catalyst that spurred Javier's decision to murder his whole family.So I think at this point,it's fair to say he did it.

Adam Cox: 34:18

He got to breaking point from the stress of all his life.But why?I don't understand why he thought that was his option.

Kyle Risi: 34:25

When someone murders a whole family,I don't think we can ever really understand what spurred someone on.Right.Yeah.And this story doesn't really go into the motive because there just isn't one.Because we need zavier to understand why.Yeah.Okay.Do you know what I mean?That's what makes us so mysterious.Why would someone choose to go and murder their whole family?Surely there must be another option.Yeah.Surely.

Adam Cox: 34:50

you're a failure at life.Doesn't mean to say your whole family is,hang on.No,not you.Sorry.Sorry.I was talking to Zavier at that point.He's a failure.Correct answer.Yeah.No.And well saved.so do we find out what

Kyle Risi: 35:03

happened to Zao?Well,let's carry on,shall we?Okay.So Xavier's father,when he died earlier that year,He was lonely,he was ill,and practically he was bankrupt and Zavier likely didn't want to follow in his father's footsteps.When his father died,Zavier was tasked with putting all his father's affairs in order,including clearing out his apartment.Now,during this process,Zavier was searching for his father's Count Signet ring,which was believed to be of huge significant value because French aristocracy doesn't exist anymore,right?Mm-hmm.So it's all by name and it's a highly prized kind of family heirloom.It goes back generations.But the ring was missing.Likely he sold it years before and there was just nothing else of worth to his father's name.Okay.It was at this time that Zavier came into possession of his father's Point two two long rifle,which he purchased the license for in early February.Now,Zavier had no previous interest or experience with any sorts of weapons,though following his father's death,he would regularly visit the shooting range,sometimes taking with him Thomas and Benoit.So the fact that he's going to this,this driving or shooting range says to me,he's made the decision.He knows what he's gonna do.He's like

Adam Cox: 36:24

practicing,although,I don't know.I think so could,you could be getting,you might inherit a gun.Mm-hmm.And obviously you might want to use the gun,so you're gonna go to a shooting range to use it.So,

Kyle Risi: 36:34

But he said that he'd never shown any interest in shooting.But I guess if it's the only thing that your father has left you,then possibly,maybe you want to try it out.

Adam Cox: 36:42

You know,it's quite fun to do that if,as long as you do it safely and everything.Mm-hmm.Um,but yeah,perhaps this spurred the idea.

Kyle Risi: 36:49

I Do you think he'd made the decision at this point,or do you think that's gonna come later on?I don't

Adam Cox: 36:53

know.I feel like it's,I don't feel like going to a driving or a shooting range is enough for yet for him to kind of trigger.

Kyle Risi: 37:01

What about if I tell you this?So it was during these visits that Xavier had asked his instructor about using silences and eventually purchased one on the12th of March along with rifle bullets.

Adam Cox: 37:14

Okay.So this is probably when he made his decision.

Kyle Risi: 37:17

I think the bullets not a problem.The silencer.Yes.Why would you need a silencer?Right.Now also a receipt from a DIY store that was located200miles away was also found within the family home on the19th of April,showing that he had bought black bags,adhesive paving slabs,all of which were used to conceal the bodies.Mm-hmm.In early April,Zavier also bought cement,a shovel and four10kilogram bags of lime.So I think he'd made the decision.Premeditated.I think what he was hoping for was that when his father died,that he was going to a find the signe ring that would solve all his problems.Exactly.There would be more money in his estate that he could then use to kind of settle up some of his debts.Yeah.And I think when he found that there was nothing that was a major blow to him psychologically,physically.And I think that just made him fall into maybe potentially more of a depression.And I think at that point,I think very soon after that's when he was like,I'm gonna commit.

Adam Cox: 38:22

That makes sense.I guess,yeah.If he's not seeing any way out and he's just inherited this gun,he's like,well,this is,this is the way out of the debt.

Kyle Risi: 38:30

Mm-hmm.That's it.Okay.And I think maybe this might be paired with Catherine getting ready to sue.Mm-hmm.So according to investigate is the entire DuPont family were last seen alive on Sunday,the3rd of April,2011.Now,that evening,both parents,Xavier and Ane and the three children went out for dinner at a local restaurant before heading to the cinema.When they returned home around1037,Xavier calls his sister Christine,but there was no answer.He leaves a message and told her about obviously them visiting the restaurant and the cinema and that he was about to put the kids to bed.He ended the message with something really chilling.He said,see you soon,maybe creepy.Right?That was very creepy.The following day on Monday,the4th of April,friends of both16year old Anne and13year old Benoit became concerned when neither turned up for school that day.They were apparently off sick.However,rather unusually,neither Anne or Benoit answered any text online messages or calls from their friends.On the5th of April,witnesses saw Zavier,an18year old Thomas,eating at a local restaurant.the waiter that served them that evening,said that there was very little conversation between them.And he also noted that Thomas began to feel ill towards the end of the meal.He then,this is Thomas,texted a friend later that night.However,he was never heard from again.

Adam Cox: 39:54

So this is where you were saying that Thomas was found separate to the others?Mm-hmm.So,Could something have happened to the family several days earlier and they're carrying on?

Kyle Risi: 40:07

No.So what had happened was that I think he had murdered the family while Thomas was away right at university.But before we get there,earlier that day,bailiff had turned up to the home to carry out an assessment of the family's belongings in preparation for the recovery of the loan at Xavier owed to Catherine.But nobody answered the door.During the same week,neighbors reported hearing the two family Labradors barking over two consecutive nights before just going silent.The next day on the6th of April,Arthur's girlfriend knocks on the door concerned that she hadn't heard from him,but nobody answered.And also there was no usual barking from the dogs,which would very often happen when someone visited the home.Right?Yeah.It was theorized that ane Arthur,Anne and Beir were all killed during the night on Sunday,the3rd of April,going into Monday the fourth.Two days later after the alleged murder,Xavier had contacted Thomas and told him to come home because his mother had been in a bicycle accident and that she was in a coma.My word.So Thomas returns home later that evening where he is then taken to the local restaurant for dinner where he was likely unknowingly given steepen pills,which may account for why he felt unwell,right as claimed by the waiter.And later Xavier then takes Thomas home.Where he's killed.Jeez.Soon after.

Adam Cox: 41:34

This is awful.What evil man,if this is him,I'm a student at the end of the story.Mm-hmm.But this is terrible.

Kyle Risi: 41:42

It's awful,isn't it?Why would you do that?And that's his heir,right?So that's his rightful oldest son.So his whole lineage is now gone.Why would you do that?Why would you do that?Adam?Adam,why?Tell me.

Adam Cox: 41:54

I,I'm just shocked.What a terrible man.

Kyle Risi: 41:58

Horrible.Now,the exact timeline,of course,of events has never really been fully established.But this is what we do know.So the lease on the family home had been terminated.All of the family's bank accounts were closed.And the schools and colleges where all four children attended had sent their final payment letters.ER's employer was informed that she was ill with a severe stomach bug,and was also told that she was moving to Australia.The following day.On the6th of April,Zavier was spotted outside the family home by neighbors alone,and on the seventh he was seen moving black bin bags into the boot of his metallic blue Citron c5.He then spent an entire week in the house before leaving Ns on the10th of April.he was heading southbound a speed camera.Caught his vehicle between NAS and La Rochelle and his credit card had been used that day at a restaurant,at a hotel in La Rochelle itself.Okay?CCTV also caught him at a cash point.Though it appeared that Zavier was not trying to hide the fact nor make any effort to try and conceal his identity or his digital footprint.Right.Okay.Now,many believe that this bizarre behavior was the actions of a man who was going to take his own life.Wow.So,uh,yeah,because you would think if he's going on the run mm-hmm.Um,yeah,he would be doing a lot more to keep in the shadows and stuff like that.So That's correct.it doesn't sound like it's gonna end well for him.It doesn't now because many family massacres typically end this way with family perpetrator in nine outta10cases,usually committing suicide.Right.The one out of10end up going on the run.But his lack of effort to conceal himself leads,investigators to believe that he was about to go and take his own life.Okay?Because initially he was in the first camp,right?Mm-hmm.Or he's on the run,but then all of a sudden when they see his,how he's interacting and how he's not trying to conceal himself,they're like,okay,he's off somewhere.Is he off on a pilgrimage through all the different towns that are meaningful to him and him and his wife,and he's gonna end his life somewhere significant.Well,you've

Adam Cox: 44:16

almost made that sound like,oh,he's,you know,the memories and stuff,but you didn't have to do this.

Kyle Risi: 44:20

No,he didn't.You're right.yeah.Yeah,you're

Adam Cox: 44:23

right.I don't give a damn if he's going down memory lane.True..He can go jump off a cliff.

Kyle Risi: 44:27

So the next day,Xavier leaves La Rochelle and continued Southwest through Tous,then going through LaPorte before arriving in Rock bru.So Jens,I'm so sorry.

Adam Cox: 44:42

That was definitely a Laurie driver,English or French.

Kyle Risi: 44:46

Well,he's there now,right?Yeah,he's there.So Eight days later the French authorities finally locate the missing metallic blue Citron C five in a small parking lot at the Formula One hotel in south of France.CCTV,also revealed that Zavier stayed at the Formula One hotel on the night of the14th of April.Footage shows Zavier crossing the parking lot,carrying a long black bag at the bottom of the bag.A long object is clearly seen,and this is believed to be the rifle that he used to kill his family.Zavier according to the footage,looks directly into the CCTV camera almost as if to say goodbye.Mm-hmm.Before then turning and walking away.Wow.Now,following this,discovery authorities took to the nearby wilderness to look for Zabi,almost certain that he had taken his own life and they were now looking for a body,but nothing was ever found to indicate that he had killed himself.Right.Okay.Zavier just simply vanished into thin air.

Adam Cox: 45:52

So he's,well,I dunno how to feel about this.has he done this,has he consciously not hid himself?To create like a trail for people to follow.Ooh.He's40chess.And then,yeah,and then there's this whole other layer to it,but actually he's now gone on the run Master's identity.But it feels like that's a lot,because I don't know exactly where this place is,but is that close to a coast?Is it inland?

Kyle Risi: 46:19

It's quite close to the coast.

Adam Cox: 46:20

So he might have just walked into the sea.

Kyle Risi: 46:23

He might have done,did Zavier commit suicide or did he go on the run fooling investigators into thinking he had killed himself in order to buy himself?More time to escape.Mm-hmm.Many believe that Xavier somehow escaped to South America on a cargo ship.Possibly to somewhere like Brazil,Argentina.They think this is plausible because Zavier was multilingual.He could speak French,English,and Spanish,okay,so he could potentially be anywhere in the world,right?Prior to his disappearance,though,Zavier had been in contact with an old girlfriend in Germany,known as Claudia,but she's never been traced.Another line of inquiry was that Zaia could have taken refuge at a monastery This was after a monk claimed to have seen him there.But after investigating further,they did find a monk that looked unknowingly like zavier.So police just determined it was obviously just a case of mistaken identity.

Adam Cox: 47:19

Oh,okay.

Kyle Risi: 47:19

So since2011,over900tips have been called into authorities but ultimately every lead.Thus far has been fruitless.A number of human remains have been found since2011in France,which have been DNA tested,but none of them matches javier because if he's gone off,

Adam Cox: 47:36

he's left this hotel.Mm-hmm.And he's gone to shoot himself.Mm-hmm.Like the only way I can think of his body disappearing once he's dead,that it's somehow gone into like the sea,down the stream into water.Because otherwise I'm sure they would've found him because yeah.How else?

Kyle Risi: 47:55

Yeah,I mean,that's a good,that's a good theory.Yeah.I know that there is wildness there.It's quite arid looking.It's really south of France,right?In the Mediterranean.

Adam Cox: 48:04

But yeah,it's possible.It was reported in one source that in July of2015,a journalist was sent a photograph of Arthur and Benoit with the words,I'm still alive,written on the back.Unfortunately,there was no way for investigators to know for sure whether or not that was written by Xavier.And also to be fair,that seems really cruel.It does.So unless he's suggesting that,oh,they've all faked their own death.the others were identified in a way.That's right.I don't

Kyle Risi: 48:30

believe that the bodies weren't them.Yeah,and I think this just sounds like a cruel joke,really.Mm-hmm.It depends the nature of the photograph.If it's something that you can just find on the internet,great.Then it's a hoax.Right.But if it's an intimate photograph that no one else could possibly have,then maybe that might have some credibility to it.Police are confident that Zavier was indeed responsible for the murders.I don't think there's any question of that,even though they're not100%certain what happened on that day.But there are so many questions that still need answering as far as I'm concerned.Firstly,why?Why did he kill?His wife and his four children while whilst they slept in their beds.Defenseless.He could have just killed himself.Yeah.Just kill yourself.Why take four innocent lives that are at the very beginning of their lives and their mother when you could just kill yourself and then you don't have to deal with any shame cuz you're dead.Why take your children?I,

Adam Cox: 49:20

yeah.That's the bit,I just don't understand why he would do that to his family.

Kyle Risi: 49:23

Was it because he was simply too ashamed of his financial status and feared that his reputation in his family's name could be ruined?Was he kind of protecting his own family?Because if their name is ruined,then what kind of quality of life can they have?Was this kind of a mercy killing?I don't know.

Adam Cox: 49:38

Oh,that's just,I,no,I can't even,I'm not even gonna entertain that.Not even a little bit,

Kyle Risi: 49:44

doesn't seem like an obvious motive to murder,I guess.Yeah.Secondly,also,what changed?What triggered Zavier into committing this cold-blooded murder?okay,we've explored that.He was maybe hoping that his father would've left in something,and it turned out that there wasn't,and then in a desperate kind of act,this was the only plausible thing,

Adam Cox: 50:06

what he felt was the only way out.Mm-hmm.I,that makes sense to me at least.

Kyle Risi: 50:11

Yeah.It's just crazy.His children had their entire lives ahead of him,and in that instance he just took it away from them,which just as gross.And this also raises the question how did Zavier manage to get away with murdering his family because I know that we know that he had back problems.Mm-hmm.Digging those graves and getting them prepared.Fair enough.He did have a whole week to do it.

Adam Cox: 50:34

Guess,maybe take some painkillers.You can work your way through it.God,he's determined,eh,yeah.But what's he hoping that they would never be found or just give him enough of a headstart to get away?Oh,such a good question.To potentially go on the run.

Kyle Risi: 50:47

I think that you're right because why go through the effort of sending the letters out,claiming that he's gonna be in the,in witness protection mm-hmm.He was trying to get away?

Adam Cox: 50:57

I think so.And then maybe.So when he's on the run,does he know that there's like news reports and stuff happening?I assume so for sure.Yeah.You would think so.So then that's when maybe he changes his tact,but it feels like he pro,I dunno,it felt like he was doing all those things to either deceive or buy him time.Enough time to at least,you know,put the police in a different direction so that he could then do this thing,but then he hasn't turned up.That's

Kyle Risi: 51:27

so weird.It is weird.

Adam Cox: 51:28

Could he be in like some,I don't know,little French?Making some maybe.Oh God.it reminds me of,I mean it's not the same,but Kool where he ended up going on the run and he's hiding,he has a new identity.Mm-hmm.I mean he didn't quite do this.he was folded in like a big drug ring.But yeah,this is.

Kyle Risi: 51:50

Is he happy though?If he's not a account,what kind of life can you be leading?If you're just a baker in a patisserie,I think it'd be quite a nice life.No,not when you've come from being a account.Oh yeah,no,yeah.And also like how did he manage to bury them in the backyard again without raising suspicion as well.It sounds like the neighbors were aware enough to sense whether or not,like the fact that their shuttles were closed,why did they not sense that someone was digging a grave under the terrace?

Adam Cox: 52:17

No,you mentioned at the very beginning like this eely quiet,which I guess it suggests that this family always had so much life,for the dogs coming home from school,whatever it is.

Kyle Risi: 52:28

yeah.And also to think that he spent seven days in the house.Without his family,knowing that they were underneath the terrace,writing those letters,cleaning everything up,getting everything prepared,it is haunting.It's scariest,gross.

52:41

And

Adam Cox: 52:41

he clearly did a very good job in tidying all that DNA evidence.Mm-hmm.Yes,exactly.So this was,yeah.Now thinking back,this feels like it was a very planned out thing for a long period of time.

Kyle Risi: 52:55

Yeah.Or he was very quick at thinking on his feet.Mm-hmm.Mm-hmm.He also allegedly contacted a number of old friends in the weeks leading up to his disappearance,offering them some of his online companies,which were showing kind of potential.He didn't want them to die out.So he was giving them away and he was in talks with one of his close friends to say kind of,if you want this,then you need to come and get it.I'm gonna give you all the codes and the logins,et cetera,but you can have it.I want nothing to do with it.So again,that just backs up this idea that it was all premeditated within the weeks leading up to,it wasn't something that just happened spur of the moment.And also the final question is that,did Xavier have an accomplice who helped him with the murders?Because how could he have done all this on his own?Well,the German girlfriend.The German girlfriend.That's what I thought.Mm.

Adam Cox: 53:42

I don't know.she doesn't have a bad back.Mm-hmm.

Kyle Risi: 53:45

Yeah,the Germans don't,they're,they're working class people.Um,they know how to work a farm,tilt some soil.

Adam Cox: 53:52

I dunno about that,but yeah,I don't know.This is left me stumped.I'm kind of annoyed if we don't have an answer.Or justice.

Kyle Risi: 54:00

The investigation is still going on.There are endless possibilities in this case,but the fact of the matters still remains as Xavier.Deon still remains a fugitive technically.Mm-hmm.Right.He's not classed as dead or anything.Authorities are looking to question him in regards to the murder of his wife and four children.Like they don't accept that he's gone until they find a body.Ane Arthur and Anne Thomas and Beir,their funeral was held on the28th of April following obviously a heartfelt service with an amazing1,400people in attendance.Um,they were all cremated before being late,rest on the30th of April in Ye's.Hometown,not connected to Foai whatsoever.Mm.Yeah.So that's the story of the De Po Family massacre.

Adam Cox: 54:45

Wow.Yeah.It was a really well fascinating story.Just so sad.

Kyle Risi: 54:50

Yeah,it is.Mm-hmm.It's a shame that people are that desperate,that they resort to desperate things.Yeah.Or for unforgivable things.Unforgivable things.So thanks for joining us for another episode of the Compendium and Assembly of fascinating and intriguing things.Remember,you can find us on Instagram at the Compendium Podcast.You can also send us an email at the compendium pod gmail.com.We always love hearing from you with your comments and your suggestions.And until we meet again,stay safe,stay curious,see you later.See you next week.