A 12-year-old girl named Lola was buried in a funeral after she was killed 10 days ago in Paris.
Her body was found inside a plastic box in the yard outside her home, and her death left the town horrified.
French government spokesman Olivier Veran said during a media briefing: “We are deeply shocked to be confronted with horror and pain.”
Lola’s father reported her daughter missing on the afternoon of October 14 when she did not return from school.
He works as a concierge at the building and used CCTV to trace his daughter’s last steps.
He claimed she entered the building with an unknown woman, who later appeared alone in the hallway as she left, carrying what appeared to be a heavy suitcase.
An autopsy showed Lola died of “cardiorespiratory failure with evidence of asphyxia and cervical compression,” the prosecutor said.
The coroner’s report cited injuries to her face, back and neck, as well as injuries that could be described as sexual assault.
A 24-year-old woman was detained in the capital on Saturday. She is in custody on charges of murder and rape of a minor, torture, barbarism and concealment of a corpse, the Paris public prosecutor said.
According to the prosecutor’s office, a 43-year-old man who is accused of helping to hide Lola’s body is also in custody.
An inquest is now underway to determine the motive for the murder and the timing of the events that led to the gruesome death.
The mayor of Paris and the Minister of Education Pape Ndiaye visited the school for girls, and psychologists provided support to parents and students.
Emmanuel Macron also received the girl’s parents at the Elysee Palace on Tuesday and said he offered his “condolences and solidarity and support for their terrible ordeal, which saddens us all.”
Reports say the arrested woman is an Algerian immigrant who has remained in the country despite a deportation order.
The president’s political rivals attacked Macron and blamed his immigration policy for the girl’s death.
Marine Le Pen, leader of the far-right National Union party, said during a heated session of the National Assembly: “The suspect in this barbaric act should not have been in our country.”
Mr Veron, the government spokesman, said on Wednesday that Lola’s parents were “asking for our collective support in what they are going through without adding to their pain”.
He added: “Like them, we want answers. Like them, we want to punish them with the necessary tough stance based on the atrocities committed. It should be done by the judicial authorities.”
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Funeral held for 12-year-old girl who was killed and stuffed inside plastic box
