Gun recovered from French lake examined by 2012 Alps murder case investigators

In a continuing unsolved murder investigation, authorities are analysing a firearm discovered by tourists to assess whether it could be the weapon used to kill a British family in the French Alps fourteen years ago.

Saad al-Hilli, 50, his wife Ikbal, 47, and her mother Suhaila al-Allaf, 74, were shot dead on a road near Annecy, a remote village in eastern France, in September 2012. The couple's two young daughters, aged four and seven, survived the attack, while a passing cyclist, 45-year-old Sylvain Mollier, was also killed.

French prosecutor Marie-Céline Lawrysz confirmed that a pistol, believed to be a Luger, was recovered on 20 August by two tourists swimming in Lake Annecy. The weapon is currently undergoing ballistic analysis in connection with the al-Hilli case.

During the original inquiry, fragments from the butt of the weapon used in the killings, a vintage Luger P06-29 pistol, were recovered from the ground near the British-registered BMW estate the family had been travelling in. The firearm was identified as a model used by the Swiss army in the 1930s, though its owner has never been traced.

In a statement, Lawrysz said the semi-automatic pistol had been found by the tourists, reported to be British, at a depth of roughly five feet and a few dozen metres from the shore of Lake Annecy.

She added: "They kept the weapon for 24 hours and carried out online research to identify its type."

"They subsequently drew a link between the discovered weapon and the one believed to have been used in the Chevaline killing on 5 September 2012."

"On 21 August 2026, they handed the weapon over to gendarmes from the local Saint-Jorioz brigade."

Investigators have so far dismissed the possibility of a contract killing, stating that a professional assassin would not have relied on a vintage weapon such as the Luger.

The discovery of the pistol is the latest in a series of leads pursued by detectives trying to resolve the mystery surrounding the four deaths.

Previous suspects arrested in connection with the case include an Iraqi prisoner known as Mr S, who was reported to have claimed he had been offered "a large sum of money" to kill Iraqis living in the UK.

Mr al-Hilli's brother Zaid was also arrested on suspicion of murder in 2013, but was later informed that no further action would be taken after police determined there was insufficient evidence to charge him.