Hamida Djandoubi ( ar, حميدة جندوبي, Ḥamīda Jandūbī; 22 September 1949 – 10 September 1977) was a Tunisian convicted murderer sentenced to death in France. He moved to

Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Franc ...

in 1968, and six years later he kidnapped, tortured and murdered 22-year-old Élisabeth Bousquet. He was

sentenced to death Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that t ...

in February 1977 and executed by

guillotine A guillotine is an apparatus designed for efficiently carrying out executions by beheading. The device consists of a tall, upright frame with a weighted and angled blade suspended at the top. The condemned person is secured with stocks at th ...

in September that year. He was the last person to be executed in

Western Europe Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's countries and territories vary depending on context. The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the ancient Mediterranean ...

, and also the last person to be lawfully executed by

beheading Decapitation or beheading is the total separation of the head from the body. Such an injury is invariably fatal to humans and most other animals, since it deprives the brain of oxygenated blood, while all other organs are deprived of the i ...

anywhere in the

Western world The Western world, also known as the West, primarily refers to the various nations and state (polity), states in the regions of Europe, North America, and Oceania.

, although he was not the last person sentenced to death in France.

Marcel Chevalier Marcel Chevalier (28 February 1921 in Montrouge, Hauts-de-Seine – 8 October 2008 in Vendôme) worked as the last chief executioner ( Monsieur de Paris) in France. He succeeded his wife's uncle, André Obrecht, in 1976 and held his position unti ...

served as chief executioner. (French)

Early life

Born in Tunisia on 22 September 1949, Djandoubi started living in Marseille in 1968, working in a grocery store. He later worked as a

landscaper Landscaping refers to any activity that modifies the visible features of an area of land, including the following: # Living elements, such as flora or fauna; or what is commonly called gardening, the art and craft of growing plants with a goal ...

but had a workplace accident in 1971: his leg got caught in the tracks of a tractor and resulted in the loss of two-thirds of his right leg.Cédric Condom, ''Le Dernier Guillotiné''

Planète+ Planète+ (formerly Planète Câble) is a French television network that primarily broadcasts documentaries. It is owned by the Canal+ Group. It is available on digital terrestrial television Digital terrestrial television (DTTV or DTT, or ...

Justice, 2011 (French)

Allegation of forced prostitution

In 1973, a 21-year-old woman named Élisabeth Bousquet, whom Djandoubi had met in the hospital while recovering from his

amputation Amputation is the removal of a limb by trauma, medical illness, or surgery. As a surgical measure, it is used to control pain or a disease process in the affected limb, such as malignancy or gangrene. In some cases, it is carried out on indi ...

, filed a complaint against him, stating that he had tried to force her into prostitution.

Murder of Élisabeth Bousquet

After his arrest and eventual release from custody during the spring of 1973, Djandoubi drew two other young girls into his confidence and then forced them into prostitution for him. On 3 July 1974, he kidnapped Bousquet and took her into his home where, in full view of the terrified girls, he beat the woman before stubbing a lit cigarette all over her breasts and genital area. Bousquet survived the ordeal so he took her by car to the outskirts of Marseille and strangled her there. On his return, Djandoubi warned the two girls to say nothing of what they had seen. Bousquet's body was discovered in a shed by a boy on 7 July 1974. One month later, Djandoubi kidnapped another girl who managed to escape and report him to police.

Trial and execution

After a lengthy pre-trial process, Djandoubi eventually appeared in court in

Aix-en-Provence Aix-en-Provence (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Ais de Provença in classical norm, or in Mistralian norm, ; la, Aquae Sextiae), or simply Aix ( medieval Occitan: ''Aics''), is a city and commune in southern France, about north of Marseille. ...

on charges of torture-murder, rape and premeditated violence on 24 February 1977. His main defence revolved around the supposed effects of the amputation of his leg six years earlier which his lawyer claimed had driven him to a

paroxysm Paroxysmal attacks or paroxysms (from Greek παροξυσμός) are a sudden recurrence or intensification of symptoms, such as a spasm or seizure. These short, frequent symptoms can be observed in various clinical conditions. They are usually ...

of alcohol abuse and violence, turning him into a different man. On 25 February, he was sentenced to death. An appeal against his sentence was rejected on 9 June. In the early morning of 10 September 1977, twelve days before his 28th birthday, Djandoubi was informed that he, like the child murderers

Christian Ranucci Christian Ranucci (6 April 1954 – 28 July 1976) was a French man convicted for the abduction and killing of an eight-year-old girl on Whit Monday 1974. Sentenced to death by beheading on 10 March, 1976, Ranucci was the third-to-last perso ...

(executed on 28 July 1976) and

Jérôme Carrein Jérôme Henri Carrein (2 July 1941 – 23 June 1977) was the second-to-last convicted criminal to be executed by guillotine in France. On 27 October 1975 in Arleux, Northern France, Carrein, father of five children, often of no fixed abode, ...

(executed on 23 June 1977), had not received a reprieve from President

Valéry Giscard d'Estaing Valéry René Marie Georges Giscard d'Estaing (, , ; 2 February 19262 December 2020), also known as Giscard or VGE, was a French politician who served as President of France from 1974 to 1981. After serving as Minister of Finance under prime ...

. Shortly afterwards, at 4:40 a.m., he was executed by

at Baumettes Prison in

. While Djandoubi was the last person executed in France, he was not the last condemned. (French) No more executions occurred after capital punishment was abolished in France in 1981 following the election of

François Mitterrand François Marie Adrien Maurice Mitterrand (26 October 19168 January 1996) was President of France, serving under that position from 1981 to 1995, the longest time in office in the history of France. As First Secretary of the Socialist Party, he ...

, and those sentenced to die had their sentences commuted. (French) Djandoubi's death was the last time any Western nation carried out an execution by beheading, as well as the most recent government-sanctioned guillotine execution in the world.

References

External links

Various photos, newspaper articles, and court documents related to the Djandoubi case
{{DEFAULTSORT:Djandoubi, Hamida 1949 births 1977 deaths French amputees 20th-century French criminals 20th-century Tunisian criminals French people convicted of murder Executed French people French pimps Tunisian kidnappers People convicted of assault People convicted of murder by France People executed by France by decapitation People executed by guillotine People executed by the French Fifth Republic People executed for murder Criminals from Marseille Tunisian people convicted of murder Tunisian people executed abroad Tunisian amputees