Family of murdered Brit student heartbreaking promise as killer's ex-wife jailed

21 December 2023 , 21:45

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Joanna Parrish, pictured here aged 18 at prom, was murdered in France when she was an exchange student

The parents of a student murdered by a French serial killer say their quest for justice is complete now his ex-wife has been convicted of being complicit in the sickening crime.

Joanna Parrish, 20, was raped and strangled in Auxerre in 1990 by Michel Fourniret – thought to have killed 11 in all and named Fourniret the Ogre of the Ardennes by French media. Fourniret, already in jail for other murders, finally confessed to killing Joanna in 2018 but died in 2021, aged 79, before trial.

Now, his ex-wife Monique Olivier, 75, has been jailed for life after being found guilty of aiding in the murder. She was already in jail for complicity in Fourniret’s other crimes. Joanna’s father, Roger, said: “Her active participation in her murder has been proven beyond any doubt. We hope that after this last obstacle we can remember our daughter with a smile on our faces, which is how we all remember her.”

Joanna's parents Roger Parrish and Pauline Murrell (Jonathan Buckmaster)

Roger, who sat through a three-week trial in Paris alongside Joanna’s mother, Pauline Murrell, said the evidence had been harrowing. But he added: “It was something we’ve been determined to do even if it took longer than 33 years, which it already has, we would have continued until we got justice for Jo.

"We’ve tried to move on. But when you have those big moments like having grandchildren, nice holidays, you always have, ‘Jo should be here’. I’m not keen on using the word closure but we do see this as the final obstacle to overcome – we’ve done everything we can for Joanna.”

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Pauline said: “It doesn’t feel like Christmas. I opened what cards had come but don’t think I’ll get the chance to reply. We have grandchildren and always try to have a family Christmas. I can see that continuing but this year will be quieter.”

Joanna, of Newnham-on-Severn, Gloucs, was working as a teaching assistant in Auxerre when she advertised English lessons in a paper in May 1990. Fourniret answered and they met. The court heard Olivier’s role in the abduction was to reassure Joanna it was safe to get in the fiend’s van. Her body was found in the Yonne River the next day.

Pauline added last night: “I really wish they still had hanging. Actually, I thought a guillotine would be ideal. That’s what I kept looking at [Olivier] and thinking, ‘I’d guillotine you and I’d sit there with my knitting and watch’.”

Adam Aspinall