A fugitive former police officer accused of killing the mothers of his children has been arrested in Portugal

Police in Portugal have arrested a former French police officer accused of murdering his partner and ex-girlfriend after kidnapping them and their children.

Cedric Prizzon, a former member of the Paris police and former international rugby player, is a father’s rights activist who was involved in a bitter custody battle with his former partner.

He had been deprived of his custody rights and had already been convicted of abusing his ex-partner, after illegally taking their son to Spain for a few weeks in 2021.

Police in Portugal said they found “two bodies buried… in an isolated area” late Wednesday, a day after they stopped Prizzon, 42, in a car near Meda in the north of the country along with his two children, a 12-year-old boy and an 18-month-old girl.

Police found a fake gun, fake documents and number plates, and about $20,000 in cash from the car, said the National Republican Guard (GNR) in a statement on social media, which included a photo of the confiscated items.

Portuguese police said the two bodies found belonged to the suspect’s “partner and ex-partner”, but “processes to identify the victims and gather evidence are ongoing.” The Supreme Council of Justice on Thursday identified the victims as Audry Cavalier and Angela Cadillac, Reuters news agency reported.

The Vila Nova de Foz Coa court, not far from where Prizzon was arrested, returned him to custody on Thursday evening after several hours of questioning.

He is accused of murder, contempt of a corpse and kidnapping, said judicial officials.

The two children will be returned to France, authorities said.

The judge prohibited Prizzon from contacting the two children, “including by phone, social media, email, text messages, or through third parties,” Reuters reported.

“Not Recommended”

French police have been hunting Prizzon since the women disappeared from their home in the Aveyron region of south-central France last week.

A manhunt for the powerfully built rugby player has begun after his former team-mate went missing on Friday.

The 40-year-old man did not come to work at the insurance company and his son was not at school.

Prizzon, his new partner, aged 26, and their young daughter were also not at home in the nearby village of Savignac.

Detectives quickly suspected that Prizzon was behind the kidnapping.

As part of a heated battle against her ex-partner over their son, Prizzon has waged a campaign against her on social media, accusing her of endangering their child.

He also participated in protests along with other fathers who lost custody of their children.

Local people in the two villages where these women lived were shocked by their deaths.

One woman in her 60s told AFP that although she thought Prizzon was “out of focus,” she “thought he wouldn’t go this far.”