Jean-Claude Romand was born on 11 February 1954 and is a French spree killer and impostor who pretended to be a medical doctor for the World Health Organization for 18 years before killing his wife, children, and parents in January 1993, when he was about to be exposed.
26 Facts About Jean-Claude Romand
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In 1996, Romand was sentenced to life in prison for the 1993 murders.
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On 28 June 2019, Jean-Claude Romand was granted conditional release and was released from prison under electronic monitoring to a Benedictine monastery, the Notre-Dame de Fontgombault abbey, whose monks agreed to receive Jean-Claude Romand for 2 years.
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Reportedly having become very pious during his time in prison, Jean-Claude Romand lived under strict conditions with the monks of the abbey, only being allowed to leave the premises for a few hours a day.
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Jean-Claude Romand participated in the daily life of the 70 monks of the abbey during his time there, working in particular on agricultural work on the few hectares of the abbey estate, and was housed in the hotel section of the abbey.
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Jean-Claude Romand was released from the monastery in 2022 and is no longer required to wear an ankle bracelet.
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Jean-Claude Romand remains obligated to continue to pay reimbursements to his victims.
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Jean-Claude Romand is forbidden to contact the families of the victims, to appear in the media, or to appear in Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes, Ile-de-France or Bourgogne-Franche-Comte areas.
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Jean-Claude Romand is required to inform his judge when moving his residence, or when leaving Indre for a period of over two weeks.
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Jean-Claude Romand has been suspected to have played a part in the death of his father-in-law, Pierre Crolet, who fell from a staircase on 23 October 1988.
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Jean-Claude Romand was born on 11 February 1954 in Lons-le-Saunier and grew up in the village Clairvaux-les-Lacs in the departement of Jura.
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Jean-Claude Romand studied at the lycee of Lons-le-Saunier until his baccalaureat.
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Jean-Claude Romand told friends and family that he had passed the first and second year medical examinations in 1975, when in fact he had purposely avoided taking either.
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For 18 years, Jean-Claude Romand posed as a successful medical professional and researcher in the World Health Organization.
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Jean-Claude Romand claimed that he had researched arteriosclerosis and that he had contact with political figures.
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Jean-Claude Romand lived off the money his wife and he had made by selling an apartment, from his wife's salary and from money given to him by various relatives, who were told that he was investing it in various hedge funds and foreign ventures.
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Jean-Claude Romand is the only witness to the death of his father-in-law, Pierre Crolet, on 23 October 1988.
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The courts ruled it an accident and Jean-Claude Romand was not prosecuted, later organizing his father-in-law's funeral and launching a fundraiser.
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Jean-Claude Romand left her body in bed, as if she were sleeping as normal.
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Jean-Claude Romand then made them go back to their beds, where he shot them both in the head.
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Around noon the same day, Jean-Claude Romand travelled to his parents' house, where he joined them for lunch.
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Jean-Claude Romand then returned to his family home, which still contained the bodies of his dead wife and children.
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Jean-Claude Romand survived the blaze but refused to talk to police during subsequent questioning.
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On 6 July 1996, Jean-Claude Romand was found guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment with no possibility of parole for 22 years; he became eligible for parole in 2015.
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Jean-Claude Romand was released into the custody of a nearby Benedictine monastery and had an electronic bracelet placed on him to ensure he did not try to escape.
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Jean-Claude Romand's deception formed the basis of the 'Subterraneans' episode of the BBC crime drama Waking The Dead.