Lyhanna Affair: Report Reveals Serious Investigation Failures

Paris – 22.06.2026: An internal investigation has uncovered significant shortcomings in handling complaints against the prime suspect in the murder of Lyhanna, an 11-year-old schoolgirl. The 41-year-old Jérôme Barella had already been reported multiple times before Lyhanna’s murder for sexually abusing minors. Despite these allegations, he was only arrested after Lyhanna’s murder.

The investigation revealed that a complaint filed in August 2025 regarding Barella’s sexual abuse of a 10-year-old daughter was not processed promptly. Although the complaint was received by the competent public prosecutor in Auch in December 2025, it was only forwarded to the gendarmerie in January 2026. Furthermore, the case was opened only three weeks after receipt of the complaint, and another six weeks passed before it was assigned to an investigative unit. These delays meant that Barella was not interrogated in a timely manner despite incriminating evidence.

The investigation also criticized the lack of prioritization of the case and insufficient communication between the various judicial authorities. It was found that the Gers gendarmerie took no effective investigative measures, aside from a request to the Toulouse gendarmerie to re-interview the victim’s mother.

In response to the investigation’s findings, the Ministers of the Interior and Justice, Laurent Nuñez and Gérald Darmanin, announced the initiation of individual administrative investigations to hold those responsible for these failures accountable. This measure aims to identify the causes of the delays and errors in handling the complaints against Barella and to implement appropriate consequences.

The tragedy of Lyhanna has sparked widespread public outrage in France and intensified the debate about the efficiency and prioritization of investigations in cases of sexual abuse of minors. The investigation’s results highlight systemic problems within the judicial and police authorities and underscore the urgent need for reforms to prevent such failures in the future.

Lyhanna’s family has expressed their disappointment over the authorities’ failures and is now demanding comprehensive reforms in handling cases of sexual abuse of minors. They emphasize the necessity that such cases be handled with the required urgency and sensitivity to prevent further tragedies.

The investigations are ongoing, and it remains to be seen what further measures the authorities will take to hold those responsible for the failures accountable and to restore public trust in the justice system.