A French court handed down a life sentence without parole on Saturday to an Algerian woman convicted of raping, torturing and killing a 12-year-old girl in Paris. Dahbia Benkired, 27, became the first woman to receive this maximum punishment under French law for murdering Lola Daviet in 2022. The judge cited extreme cruelty and total dehumanization in the verdict.
Authorities found the victim's body inside a trunk at the apartment building where her parents worked as caretakers. Security footage showed Benkired approaching Daviet after school on Oct. 14, 2022, then leading her into a flat. The girl died from asphyxiation after being bound with duct tape.
Benkired had overstayed a student visa and ignored orders to leave France. Three psychiatric experts noted psychopathic tendencies but found her competent to stand trial. Only four men have received this irreducible life sentence since France introduced it in 1994.
Authorities found the victim's body inside a trunk at the apartment building where her parents worked as caretakers. Security footage showed Benkired approaching Daviet after school on Oct. 14, 2022, then leading her into a flat. The girl died from asphyxiation after being bound with duct tape.
Benkired had overstayed a student visa and ignored orders to leave France. Three psychiatric experts noted psychopathic tendencies but found her competent to stand trial. Only four men have received this irreducible life sentence since France introduced it in 1994.
