An 11-year-old girl was fatally shot, and her parents severely injured in a shocking incident on Saturday, June 10, allegedly over a long-standing dispute with a neighbor.
The shocking attack occurred in their disputed garden in Saint-Herbot, France, where Solaine Thornton and her parents were enjoying a barbecue. The assailant, 70-year-old Dirk Raats, also critically injured her father, Adrian, and her mother, Rachel. Solaine’s eight-year-old sister, Celeste, narrowly escaped and managed to get help.
During a court session on Monday, June 12, Raats, the man facing murder and attempted murder charges, argued that shooting Solaine was unintentional. According to prosecutors, Raats intentionally targeted Adrian and Rachel, shooting them from a close range of less than 30 feet, accidentally hitting Solaine who was swinging at the time.
The tragic event took place in Saint-Herbot, a town in western France across the English Channel. Notably, all parties involved in the incident are not French citizens. The suspect, Raats, is a retired Dutch national, and the victims, the Thornton family, hail from Britain.
The dispute originated when the Thorntons removed a large oak tree that extended onto the Raats’ property. This led to Raats and his wife filing a lawsuit for damages, which they lost. In 2019, Raats sought resolution through a town hall meeting, but the Thorntons refused to participate.
Following the attack, it was discovered that Raats and his wife were under the influence of drugs. Authorities found a large stash of cannabis and an illegal firearm at their residence.
After the dreadful attack on her family, Celeste sought help from neighbors Pierre Leroy and his wife Frederique. Leroy heartbreakingly recalled the moment when Celeste informed them of her sister’s demise. When they reached the scene, they found Solaine’s body held in her mother’s arms, while an injured Adrian remained conscious.
