BRIT sisters who survived a family massacre in the Alps may return to the scene for a reenactment day after a major new twist in the case.
Engineer Saad al-Hilli, 50, his wife, Iqbal, 47, and her mother, Suhaila al-Allaf, 74, were shot dead in a BMW near Lake Annecy, in eastern France in 2012.
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Sylvain Mollier, 45, who was on his bike and is believed to have been at the scene simply “at the wrong time” was also killed.
Seven-year-old Zainab Al–Hilli survived despite being shot in the shoulder and beaten around the head with a gun.
Her sister Zeena, 4, escaped by hiding in the back of the Brit-Iraqi family’s stricken car, which was parked in an isolated spot near the Alpine town of Chevaline.
Last week, two British divers breathed new life into the cold case when they stumbled on a pistol at the bottom of the lake.
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Now, prosecutor Marie-Celine Lawrysz, who works for the Nanterre cold case unit, said she was considering a reenactment involving the two sisters, now aged 18 and 21.
She told French outlet RTL how the reenactment could be crucial to unearthing new details from the women’s memory of the tragic day.
Lawrysz explained: “We see this in other cases, with reconstructions involving interviews and very specific methods.
“Investigators [who are] highly experienced in interviewing traumatised victims at the scene of the events can obtain details and new information from witnesses or victims.”
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A reenactment date has not been set as authorities need to obtain the sisters’ consent and finance for the trip.
Hand-grip fragments of a pistol, specifically a Luger PO6/29 Parabellum 7.65, were found at the scene, leading forensics experts to conclude that it was the weapon used in the horrifying – and mysterious – mass murder.
And in a bombshell twist, it emerged last week that tourist divers discovered exactly the same kind of rare Swiss Army sidearm at the bottom of Lake Annecy, which at its deepest is 269ft.
An investigating source said: “The gun was immediately salvaged, and rushed away for forensic analysis.
“The time it has spent in the water will make analysis extremely complex.”
Police are now trying to work out if it was the same weapon used in the quadruple murder in September 2012.
Last week, The Sun revealed that detectives are also set to re-interview a person of interest.
A mysterious Danish man – who is not being named publicly – was traced to the area through his mobile phone signals.
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And he was also linked to the scene of another brutal murder a year earlier using the same tracking technology.
An enquiry source told The Sun: “He was spoken to in the years after the murders, and claimed to be a routine holidaymaker enjoying the countryside.
“This does not mean he has been cleared – he is certainly still viewed as a mysterious Dane.
“What we can now say is that, following extensive enquiries, he will now certainly be re-interviewed.”
The ruthless killer fired 21 bullets in under two minutes, hitting his victims with 17 of them.
Each of them had multiple gunshot wounds to the head.
Sabine Khéris, a magistrate who specialises in cold cases, said the killer was likely to have been “methodical and calm”.
She said they had undoubtedly received “shoot to kill” training, after performing “double taps” on his victims.
A “double tap” involves a shooter hitting a victim with a bullet, and then using another one to confirm a kill.
The gun will have a serial number, and this may help investigators track down its precise history, potentially right up until it came into the hands of the murderer.
Zainab had previously recalled seeing “one bad man”, but in 2022 she helped police piece together what happened.
Investigators told Le Parisien that the victim offered “a testimony of unique precision about the drama”.
She recounted how the family was on holiday, and enjoying a drive when they got to the “edge of a small road riddled with potholes,” and Zainab got out of the car with her father.
She recalled seeing cyclist Sylvian Mollier, and while other members of the family were getting out of the car “gunshots rang out”.
Zainab was ordered back into the car by her parents, but then the shooter grabbed the girl from behind.
“She first of all thought it was her father, but then saw the white skin and bare hands of her attacker, and realised it couldn’t be him,” police said.
“Zainab struggled but couldn’t get out of the grip. According to her, the killer was wearing long trousers and a leather jacket.”
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Zainab was then pistol whipped and blacked out after suffering multiple facial injuries.
She later made a full recovery and returned to the UK, where she now lives.