French taxi driver protests innocence of Swedish woman's murder

A French taxi driver convicted of the 2008 murder of a 19-year-old Swedish woman insisted he was innocent at an appeal hearing near Paris on Tuesday. Bruno Cholet was arrested six days after the body of Susanna Zetterberg was discovered and convicted the same year.

The victim, Susanna Zetterberg DR

“I stand by my previous statements,” said the defendant at his appeal on Tuesday.

Cholet, a 57-year-old who operated a taxi without a licence, had three previous convictions for crimes of violence and rape.

The charred body of Zetterberg was found on the edge a wood, 50 kilometres outside Paris.

She had been shot four times in the head and also had a stab wound.

The corpse's condition made it impossible for forensics to determine if sexual aggression had occurred.

In court on Tuesday Cholet went on to speak about the lack of affection he suffered during his childhood and the total of 30 years he has spent in jail.

According to his prison visitor, the defendant “was very upset after his first condemnation" and often speaks about the case, "remaining coherent, always using the same words and details to show his innocence”.

A plastic bag with the inscription “Susana 377” which contained handcuffs and a gun covered with the victim’s DNA was found during the search of Cholet's vehicle in 2008, leading to his arrest.

The victim’s mother, Aasa Palmqvist, was present in court. 

“This appeal is not going to reveal more information,” she said, adding that she hopes for an “identical verdict”  to that of the previous trial.