4 shot dead in French Alps, young girl critical

The French Alps / JEAN-PIERRE CLATOT/AFP/Getty Images

Updated 3:05 p.m. ET

(AP) PARIS - Four people were found shot to death on a forest road in the French Alps, their bodies left in and near a car with British license plates, authorities said Wednesday.

Police in the Haute-Savoie region initially said that a girl found at the site with bullet wounds had died. But an official with the regional gendarme service — a kind of police force — later said she was still alive in critical condition in a nearby hospital. The official was not authorized to be publicly named.

A cyclist on the rugged road discovered the bodies near the village of Chevaline, Prosecutor Eric Maillaud said.

Three bodies were found in a BMW sports utility vehicle registered in Britain, the body of a cyclist was found nearby, and the wounded girl was found near the vehicle, he said. A large number of bullet casings were scattered around the car.

The identity of the victims is unclear. The British Foreign Office says it is aware of reports of the incident and is looking into it.

About 60 officers fanned out in the forest to search for possible perpetrators, a gendarme captain at the site said on French television.

Police blocked off the road where the bodies were found. French television footage showed a sign at the mouth of the route warning "Dangerous Road" in French, English and German.

Autopsies are planned for Thursday or Friday, the prosecutor said.

The bodies were found in a wooded area in the foothills of the Alps known for its springs and waterfalls.

[rwsmith29456]

Passengers, a little girl and a cyclist? Are these people important politically or something? Did the cyclist just happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time? Was it a 'thrill killing'? Lots of questions here. I hope the little girl pulls through.

[carolhill814]

This is a horrible terrible story and to think this person or people thought they would get away with murder but they won't because one person did live and hopefully she will be able to talk and I hope she is well protected so she will be able to talk.

MAY GOD GIVE THE FAMILY MEMBERS OF THESE PEOPLE THE STRENGTH TO GO THROUGH THIS REALLY TOUGH TIME NOW AND FOR ALL TIME AS I AM SURE HE WILL!!!

[formerlyluvnut]

Dick Cheney & George Bush?????

[earth5695]

You need mental help buddy.

[bread58]

What are you talking about, GhostCoyote? Gun control DOES work. Just ask the good residents of Chicago, where legislation against the ownership of guns has made guns dissolve away into the airy-fairy land of good intentions, where everyone skips around in magical happy clothes and sings "Kumbaya" with one another. Just they do in D.C. Detroit. Philadelphia. Los Angeles. And New York.

It works.

[GhostCoyote]

So much for gun control

[carolhill814]

You can control all of guns in the world but you can't control the people and that is what the problem is.

[AttyFAM]

GhostCoyote -

Just how often have you heard of mass shootings in France? Compare that to the frequency in the USA. Not even close. Now compare deaths by firearms in France with deaths by firearms in the USA. Again no comparison. One incident does not make a trend.

As to control of firearms, it is necessary to control the source - i.e., the major supplier, which is the USA. Got it?