French police detain two men after TikTok influencer Sonia Bellina found dead in Gard vineyard

Identification and forensic findings

Judicial authorities in southern France confirmed on 19 August 2026 that human remains discovered in a vineyard belong to 29-year-old social media content creator Sonia Bellina. An agricultural worker discovered the naked, partially burned body on 12 August lying between rows of vines in Saint-Gilles, a municipality located roughly 20 kilometres south of Nîmes in the Gard department. Nîmes public prosecutor Cécile Gensac stated that formal identification required nine days of forensic examinations and DNA analysis, following initial assessments confirming only that the victim was a young woman. Following the conclusive genetic match, prosecutors opened a formal criminal inquiry for murder.

Disappearance and custody of suspects

Investigators reconstructed Bellina's movements in the days preceding her death after relatives reported her missing. The victim, who divided her time between Paris and Nîmes, left her mother's home around 01:00 during the night between 11 August and 12 August to meet an acquaintance. Relatives monitored her position through shared mobile phone location data before losing contact when she failed to return home. Gendarmerie investigators examined security camera footage and analyzed data concerning a suspicious vehicle reported in the vicinity. On 19 August, authorities arrested two men and placed them in police custody. Gensac confirmed that investigators gathered evidence indicating their direct or indirect involvement in the incident, though their identities and motives remain under investigation.

Social media following and online abuse

Bellina had established a substantial audience across multiple platforms, counting 260,000 followers on her primary TikTok account, 120,000 followers on a secondary TikTok profile, and 13,000 followers on Instagram. Her sister Mia stated that family members were actively preparing for her 30th birthday on 30 September. In the days following the discovery of the body, the family encountered online harassment across social networks, where anonymous users posted disparaging remarks suggesting the victim bore responsibility for the crime. In an interview with regional newspaper Midi Libre, her sister spoke out against the abusive comments, explaining that Bellina had left for a routine meeting and never returned.

Legal response and national statistics

Family lawyer Mourad Battikh denounced the online reactions to the victim's social media content, telling broadcaster RTL that the killing represented an exceptionally cruel murder in which the victim was abandoned in an open field. Battikh warned that legal counsel will scrutinize online platforms and formally report any abusive or unlawful comments to judicial authorities for prosecution.

The family is going through an extremely violent ordeal. They request respect for their privacy and their grief and will not be making any further statements.

Forensic specialists continue examining physical evidence retrieved from the Saint-Gilles vineyard as the judicial inquiry proceeds. According to French feminist collective #NousToutes, which compiles national counts of gender-based killings, France recorded 79 feminicides in 2026 up to 14 July.