Cédric Jubillar confesses to killing wife Delphine after five years of denial, Toulouse court vows swift action

The confession

After five years of maintaining his innocence, Cédric Jubillar, 38, admitted on Monday 6 July that he caused the death of his wife Delphine, a 33-year-old nurse who vanished from their home in Cagnac-les-Mines on the night of 15–16 December 2020. The confession came in a handwritten letter to his new lawyers, Pierre and Guy Debuisson, revealed by La Dépêche du Midi. Jubillar had been convicted of murder in October 2025 and sentenced to 30 years in prison; his appeal trial was due to open in Toulouse on 21 September 2026.

I hope the answers provided by Cédric Jubillar will allow (the couple's children) to mourn and give Delphine a burial.

Court response

The first president of the Toulouse Court of Appeal, Chantal Ferreira, responded on Tuesday 7 July by stating that "justice will act quickly." She appointed a magistrate "to carry out all acts useful for the manifestation of truth," noting that the court had not yet received any formal request for a hearing from Jubillar's lawyers. According to BFMTV, the confession letter had still not been transmitted to the magistrates as of Tuesday, though the defence said it would be sent "rapidly."

Justice will act quickly.

Defence strategy

Jubillar's lawyers indicated that the confession emerged gradually over recent weeks, as trust was built. Pierre Debuisson said his client "had the need to talk" and was "psychologically locked up" before. Guy Debuisson told BFMTV that Jubillar denies any "intention to kill his wife," describing a "conjugal dispute" that led to an "excess of violence" and Delphine's death. The defence is thus expected to contest the murder charge and argue instead for a lesser offence of fatal blows, a strategy some commentators have likened to invoking a "crime of passion."

The missing body

Delphine's body has never been found, despite extensive searches by gendarmes and a citizen search involving over a thousand people. Jubillar is now "ready" to tell investigators where he hid the body, according to his lawyers. The location of the remains remains the central unanswered question.

Children and next steps

The couple's two children, aged 18 months and 6 years at the time of the disappearance, are represented by lawyer Laurent Boguet. The defence has said holding the appeal trial on the scheduled date of 21 September will be "impossible." If a postponement is requested, it will be examined by the assize court on that date, though the presiding judge could also order a delay earlier.