Shock and revulsion are mounting with new revelations surrounding the death of 11-year-old Liana in France, exposing the dark past of the 41-year-old alleged perpetrator’s family. The tragic incident has drawn the attention of both police and judicial authorities into a deeper investigation into the past of Jerome Barella and his family. An even more shocking element involves accusations against the father of the alleged perpetrator. Two step-granddaughters accused him of attempting to sexually abuse them from 2010 to 2018. Looking back at the details of these cases revealed tragic stories of violence and exploitation that until recently remained in the shadows.
Read: Murder of 11-year-old in France: Main suspect isolated in prison – His daughters removed from school
Shocking testimony from granddaughter of 41-year-old alleged murderer’s father in 11-year-old Liana case in France
Maeva, one of the two alleged survivors, shared her devastating testimony through French media BFMTV, bringing to light the nightmarish experiences she endured. Now 20 years old, Maeva expressed feelings of relief and sadness, as she is now officially recognized as a rape victim after the Beziers prosecutor’s decision to restart the investigation. With tears in her eyes, she stated that she feels happy her truth has finally been accepted, but admitted that this process brings back the shadows of her traumatic experiences. While she feels a small light of vindication, the need to face her past again remains painful, creating intense emotional burden. During a television interview, Maeva shared one of the many disturbing experiences she had with Joel Barella, the man who had married her grandmother. The incident unfolded in the family trailer, leaving indelible marks on her memory.
“I was twelve years old then. It started with gestures. I trusted Joel but one night, he slipped into my bed. He thought I was sleeping, but I wasn’t sleeping” she initially stated and continued. “He was rubbing against me. There are no words“. According to her account, the attacks continued at a swimming pool and later during trips to the sea. “It had become natural for him, it was something he had learned, so he took advantage of it“, she reveals. “For him, that’s how things were and I had to get used to it“.
After remaining silent for a long period, “out of fear and perhaps because I was innocent at that time” as she claimed, the young woman finally confided what she was experiencing to her school teacher. “He went to the station and then, the police came to my mother’s house“, she added. Maeva remembers a “delicate” moment when she was questioned by police. “My mother didn’t know, she found herself facing a fait accompli… I blamed myself for not telling her“, she recalls, adding that her mother supported her through this ordeal. “You can imagine that at 13 years old, I had to talk to a police officer and tell him everything in detail… It was complicated, it was heavy. (…) I received this pressure from the family and I was afraid to say things I might regret“.
Maeva’s half-sister had also accused their step-grandfather of child rape for acts committed between ages 10 and 13. After an eight-year investigation, the examining magistrate issued a dismissal order in 2021, clearing Barella of the charges. “She has rights too“, says Maeva. “I know her better than anyone. I believe her. (…) There’s no doubt, I don’t understand how a child that age could be mature enough to invent such a scenario” she concluded.
“Je n’ai jamais rien dit par peur”, confie Maeva, victime présumée de Joël Barella, père de Jérôme Barella pic.twitter.com/VIkHDweemV
— BFM (@BFMTV) June 11, 2026
