A self-confessed serial killer went on trial in France today for raping and murdering seven young women with the help of his wife.
Michel Fourniret (65) has admitted killing seven women and girls over a 14-year period from 1987 to 2001. He operated mainly in the Ardennes region of northern France and Belgium.
Monique Olivier the wife of self-confessed French serial killer Michel Fourniret, is seen at the start of her trial in Charleville-Mezieres
His wife, Monique Olivier (59), is accused of taking part in one of the murders and supporting Fourniret in four others. She said she acted under the influence of her husband.
If convicted, they face life imprisonment.
Fourniret appeared in court after saying he might not attend the trial. However, he refused to speak after a request to hold a closed hearing was rejected. Instead he held up a sign reading: "Without a closed hearing, sealed lips".
The couple, linked by what prosecutors call a "criminal pact", became acquainted after Fourniret placed an advertisement for correspondents while serving a prison sentence for sex crimes in the 1980s.
In addition to the cases being tried this week, Fourniret is suspected of a number of other killings, including that of 20-year-old British woman Joanna Parrish in 1990.
Fourniret, a former industrial draughtsman who also worked as a forest warden and school supervisor, was arrested in Belgium in 2003 after one of his prospective victims escaped and called the police. He was extradited to France in 2006.
Psychologists concluded Fourniret, who has a long history of sexual offences, was not insane. Instead they believe he took a sadistic pleasure in rape and killing.
He has admitted murdering Isabelle Laville in 1987, Fabienne Leroy in 1988, Jeanne-Marie Desramault and Elisabeth Brichet in 1989, Natacha Danais in 1990, Celine Saison in 2000 and Mananya Thumpong in 2001.
He has helped police find some of the bodies buried in the heavily wooded region that straddles the Belgian-French border.