Missing French toddler: Expert reveals why it should be easier to find Émile this winter

A disappearance that continues to intrigue the whole of France? Where has little Émile gone? After escaping his grandparents' surveillance on July 8, he's still nowhere to be found.

A more propitious season

While the investigation to find the little boy has been ongoing for the past three months, no real leads have yet been found. A new, in-depth search should take place in late autumn or early winter. Indeed, this could be a good time to look for (and actually find) Émile. As François Daoust, former director of the Institut de recherche criminelle de la gendarmerie nationale (IRCGN), explains:

Without vegetation, the terrain appears in a different light, and it's quite common for bodies to be found at this time of year.

Investigators could discover nooks and crannies of nature hitherto unseen.

Read more:Missing French toddler: Witness reveals he saw Émile's grandfather when the boy disappeared

An ounce of hope

A few months after the tragic disappearance, a witness changed his story. Whereas he had claimed to have seen the little boy walk up the street towards the Lavoir, he now explained that the boy was walking down the street. This change in information does not seem to have made the investigators' task any easier.

Émile's family, who had remained silent, assured us that they remain hopeful, despite the terrible ordeal. After the child's parents, it was the grandparents who spoke:

Faced with such an ordeal, we're always afraid of a psychological or physical reaction. Marie sometimes asks us how to spot the first signs of depression. 'If you can't stand your child's crying, if you overreact with your loved ones...' We're all tense.

Read more:Missing French Toddler: Who are little Emile's parents and grandparents?

This article has been translated from Oh!MyMag FR.

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