Corpse of top French chef found in freezer after girlfriend confesses to 'something unfortunate' on drunken night out

By Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 3:29 PM on 11th August 2010

Police have discovered the body of one of France's best-known former chefs hidden in a freezer after his girlfriend revealed on a drunken night out that 'something unfortunate' had happened to him.

The frozen corpse of retired restaurateur Jean-Francois Poinard was found by detectives at an appartment in Lyon, south east France.

The body of the 71-year-old man - one of Lyon's top chefs in the 1970s and 80s - is believed to have been concealed in the freezer for up to two years, officers said.

They made the gruesome discovery after Mr Poinard's former girlfriend Guylene Collober, 51, told her daughter on a night out that 'something unfortunate' had befallen her lover.

The daughter informed police who raided the apartment on Tuesday this week.

When officers arrived, Mrs Collober is said to have collapsed in tears telling them: 'I think you'll find what you're looking for.'

Mr Poinard's body was hidden in a chest freezer in the foetal position and covered with plastic bags, police said.

A spokesman added: 'An initial examination suggests it could have been there for up to two years.

'A full post mortem examination will be carried out to discover the precise cause of death.'

Mrs Collober had been taken into custody charged with hiding a body, but faced further charges depending on the findings of the autopsy, the spokesman said.

Lyon newspaper Le Progres described Mr Poinard as one of the city's 'great names' in gastronomy.
It wrote: 'He owned several excellent restaurnts here over the years.

'He was passionate and exacting chef, but also a true "bon viveur" who was as well liked out of the kitchen as he was respected inside it.'

From: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1302158/Chef-Jean-Francois-Poinards-body-freezer.html