The funeral Mass for the father of Sophie Toscan du Plantier has been told he wasn’t afraid to die because he knew he would be reunited with his murdered daughter.
Close friends and family of Georges Bouniol gathered at the historic Church of St Eustache in central Paris on Monday to pay their final respects to the 98-year-old, who died in hospital on December 30th, a week after the 28th anniversary of his daughter’s murder.
His widow, Marguerite, who suffers from Parkinson’s disease, arrived at the church in a wheelchair, assisted by her grandson, Pierre-Louis Baudey-Vignaud, the son of Ms Toscan du Plantier.
In an emotional tribute, Georges’ son, Stéphane Bouniol, told mourners about happy summers spent fishing with his father, a “dignified man who was always smiling”. He said he had been keen to spend every holiday in Lozère in southern France, from where his own father’s family hailed. Stéphane broke down as he remembered how Georges had been devastated by the loss of Sophie.
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“Papa spoke of how my sister had been taken from us much too soon. In his own way, he wasn’t at all afraid to die one day, because he knew that he would see her again. We miss you both, terribly.”
Many references were made to family throughout the ceremony. Georges’ eldest son, Bertrand Bouniol, said their father had three “pillars”, or great loves, of his life: the Montorgueil quarter of Paris, where he was born and raised, Lozère, and his family, which he described as the “centre of his universe”.
He said Georges was born just metres from St Eustache, his parish church. He had married Marguerite there in 1954 and later they baptised their three children, including Sophie, within its walls. A Gothic masterpiece, it is the second largest church in Paris, after Notre-Dame, with its origins dating back to the 13th Century. Cardinal Richelieu, Molière and Madame de Pompadour were christened there, and it was also the venue for King Louis the 14th’s First Communion.
Speaking of the “great love” shared by Georges and Marguerite, Sophie’s son, Pierre-Louis, told mourners the couple had been “inseparable” for more than 70 years. He said their marriage had served as an example to their children and grandchildren. While his grandmother was suffering great pain at her husband’s passing, Pierre-Louis said Marguerite also felt proud to have spent her life by his side. He described Georges as an “exceptional man” who grew up with “simple, powerful values” that never left him. He said he had always taken great care of his family, and been proud of their achievements. Despite having endured great tragedy, he said his grandfather had lived a “beautiful life”.
“As my uncle Stéphane said, you will meet your daughter – my mother – Sophie again in heaven. You will stay in my heart forever.”
Georges had spent almost three decades fighting for justice for the murdered film producer, whose badly beaten body was discovered outside her holiday home at Toormore near Schull in west Cork on December 23rd, 1996. For years, he and his wife visited the house on the anniversary of her death. In an interview with The Irish Times in 2013, Georges described her murder as a “nightmare that never ends”.
Speaking before the funeral, his brother-in-law, Jean Pierre Gazeau, said that until the end, Georges remained convinced his daughter had been killed by the chief suspect in the case, Ian Bailey, who died last January.
The English journalist was twice arrested and questioned by gardaí, but never charged. He repeatedly denied any involvement in the murder, but was convicted in absentia of voluntary homicide by a court in Paris in 2019, and sentenced to 25 years in prison. Attempts by French authorities to have him extradited were unsuccessful because the Irish courts refused to approve his extradition.
“So much circumstantial evidence points to his guilt,” said Mr Gazeau. “He was convicted here in Paris in 2019. It is very frustrating that we will never know what happened between when Sophie made that final call to her husband, Daniel, that night and when her body was discovered the following morning. We need to know the truth. We need everything to be clarified.”
Mr Gazeau said it was never too late for the truth to emerge, and welcomed the fact gardaí were carrying out a cold-case review of the original investigation into the murder.
Survived by his widow, Marguerite, his two sons, six grandchildren and four great-grandchildren, Mr Bouniol will be laid to rest on Tuesday in the family plot in the cemetery in the remote village of Combret in Lozère, next to the grave of his daughter, Sophie.
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