Three years ago, we reported on the abduction, rape, torture, and murder of 12-year-old Lola in Paris. The accused killer is an Algerian woman in her 20s named Dahbia Benkired, who, at the time, was under an order to leave French territory.
This week, the trial of Benkired opened in Paris. The article below from Europe 1 (France) is translated by Fousesquawk.
The murder of Lola: The family, in tears, confronts the defendant- Dahbia Benkired asks for forgiveness.
-Jean-Baptiste Marty
October 17, 2025, at 16:02-Updated October 17, 2025, at 23:57
Three years after the murder of the 12-year-old girl, the trial of Dahbia Benkired opened Friday at the Palace of Justice in Paris. The family of Lola, in tears, confronted the defendant for the first time, who offered a half-hearted apology.
Three years ago, the death of Lola, a 12-year-old girl, discovered in a suitcase in the rear courtyard of her apartment building in Paris, after having been tortured and raped, sparked widespread emotion across France.
The trial of the defendant, Dahbia Benkired, a 27-year-old Algerian, under an order to leave French territory at the time, opened at the Palace of Justice in Paris on Friday, October 17, and the first poignant moments were when Delphine Daviet, Lola's mother, and her older brother, Thibaut, approached the bar in tears.
They asked to address Dahbia Benkired in the name of the entire family. "We would like for you to tell the truth, and nothing but the whole truth," Thibaut said, his lips trembling.
Character examination
A decimated family, the emotion is very, very strong. Friday morning, about 20 of the family and friends arrived together, in a group, at the Palace of Justice in Paris. All were dressed in white t-shirts. On them, a picture of Lola, the young girl with blond hair and blue eyes.
In the dock, Dahbia Benkired, her hair tied back in a bun, her face puffy. She was able to speak for the first time on Friday morning and asked the family for forgiveness.
"It's her trial, so I think she is also expecting to get questions, to have the opportunity to answer them," said Attorney Mathias Darmon, lawyer for the Innocence in Danger Association, a civil party ( to the trial). "And I hope she will have explanations to give us on the atrocities she may have committed."
The court first drew lots for the jurors who will participate in this trial. The hearing continued on Friday with the character examination of Dahbia Benkired.
A drug addicted past
She says half-heartedly to the court, "I ask for forgiveness, it is horrible what I did, and I regret it," she tries to apologize. Later during the hearing, the president of the court asks her about her drug addicted past. "I smoked a lot, I lost count. It could have been more than 20 joints a day. I stopped for a while, but I started again the week before the incident," she explains.
On the television screens, the body of Lola is projected. One can see the young girl, completely nude, curled up in the trunk with gray tape across her face. Lola's mother, her brother, and some 20 relatives who are accompanying her, all dressed in white t-shirts emblazoned with the image of the young girl, leave the room in tears.
Dagbia Benkired, a blank stare fixed on the screens, her face showing no emotion. The verdict is expected on Friday, October 24, 2025.
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