The funeral of little Émile this Saturday in Saint-Maximin-la-Sainte-Baume

The famous Basilica Sainte-Marie-Madeleine in Saint-Maximin-la-Sainte-Baume (Var) will welcome the funeral of Émile Soleil, disappeared on July 8, 2023 at the Vernet (Alpes-de-Haute-Provence), at age of 2 years. The religious office, which will be public, will take place this Saturday, February 8, 2025, not far from the village of La Bouilladisse (Bouches-du-Rhône), where the family of Émile resides. He will be celebrated by a priest, family friend and main support during this event.

Burial will take place in the strictest family intimacy, in the Haut-Vernet hamlet cemetery, where some relatives of the child live. His parents, Colomban and Marie, would have already approached municipal authorities to organize the ceremony.

Always no certain conviction for investigators

As for the investigation, three main hypotheses are currently explored by investigators. The accident remains a possibility, Émile may have left the hamlet alone and having lost in the mountains. The hypothesis of an animal attack, in particular by a raptor or a wolf, is also envisaged, in the light of the discovery of the skull by a hiker on March 30.

Finally, a criminal track is not excluded, in particular due to the surprisingly intact state of the clothes found, which raises questions about a possible human intervention.

Twenty soldiers work “ahead of this file”, according to General Hubert Bonneau, director general of the national gendarmerie. “Our job is also to discover the truth so that families mourn. It is a duty that we have vis-à-vis families. This is the most important thing, ”explained the High-Grade to our colleagues from RTL.