Fresh DNA tests have confirmed that Veronique Courjault, the wife of the Frenchman who reported finding two dead babies in the freezer of his Seoul villa, is the mother of the infants. Police investigators said they acquired on Aug. 8 a tissue sample from a hospital in southern Seoul where Mme. Courjault underwent a hysterectomy three years ago and asked the National Institute of Scientific Investigation (NISI) to analyze it. The result proved a biological relationship between Mme. Courjault and the two babies, police said.
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Residents in the hometown of the Frenchman who reported finding two dead babies in the freezer of his Seoul villa read a newspaper article about the incident.
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The Chosun Ilbo has learned that Mme. Courjault had surgery at the hospital twice in 2003, on Dec. 14 and 19. Her doctor said she was taken to the emergency room on Dec. 13 and had surgery to treat peritonitis the next day. But on Dec. 19 she had a hysterectomy because the inflammation did not improve. ¡°The condition of the womb was so bad that we were unable to tell whether she was pregnant,¡± her doctor said. ¡°But this kind of inflammation is often caused by abortion or aftereffects of childbirth.¡± That suggests Mme. Courjault gave birth to the babies somewhere other than a hospital in late November or early December that year, got infected during the delivery and was eventually forced to see a doctor.
The Courjaults deny being the parents of the children. Their lawyer Marc Morin said the tissue kept by the hospital would allow only blood characteristics to be identified but does not contain DNA information. But Han Myun-soo, the National Institute of Scientific Investigation official in charge of the DNA test, quipped the argument that DNA was not contained in the human tissue was ¡°scientifically new enough to be published in Science magazine.¡± ¡°We repeated the test to confirm the result and to shield us from any refutation,¡± Han said. ¡°I am certain that the couple are the parents of the frozen babies.¡±
While Korean police are considering booking the Courjaults, French police are also expected to launch their own investigation into the case since two children of French nationality died. The Bangbae Police station in Seoul, which is in charge of the case, said French police would not let the couple escape justice since there is reliable evidence. ¡°If the couple refuse to come to Korea, we will help French police to bring them to justice in France,¡± an officer said.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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