Christophe Ellul51, attended the first court hearing in Soissons, a city northeast of Paris, where he was accused of involuntary manslaughter of his wife, Elisa Pilarski. The trial captures media attention in France because it can set a legal precedent, as it is the first time that the Pitbull owner is tried for his dog’s attack.
Elisa, 29 years old, was pregnant six months when he suffered a fatal attack by your dog Curtis during a walk in the Retz forest, in Aisne.
The bites caused deep wounds and tears to his limbs and head. In a matter of minutes she bled to death..
The Justice decided to accuse his partner of not having taken the necessary precautions and «allowing the woman to take the animal for a walk alone, even though it posed a danger to her.»
They even took into account Elisa’s height, 1.52 meters, and her weight, 56 kilograms, as determining factors to argue that she could not manipulate Curtis alone, due to the animal’s great physical power. And even less so in its advanced state of pregnancy.
On the day of the attack they believed it had been a pack of hunting dogs, but the evidence indicates that it was Curtis
Elisa took Curtis, one of the five dogs she had with Christophe, for a walk. They lived in Saint-Pierre-Aigle, a rural town an hour and a half drive from the French capital.
According to the Corriere della SeraChristophe worked at Roissy airport and that day he was doing his usual work day. At 1:19 pm she received a desperate call from Elisa, where she managed to tell him that she was scared by «some dogs that were threatening her.»
He immediately left for the forest and found two hunting dogs, with no sign of Elisa. Around 3:00 pm he made the devastating discovery of his partner’s lifeless and destroyed body among the trees. Next to him was Curtis, crouching.
He called the emergency services and the local police also attended. In her first statement she told them that she did not even conceive of the possibility that her dog was the one who attacked her, and pointed out a group of 30 dogs that were participating in a roe deer hunt near the place.
«I promise you that justice will be done. Take care of our son Enzo. They are together up there, without me. I don’t know how I am going to live without you,» his partner expressed devastated in a message posted on Facebook.
Several French hunting associations, who claimed not to be involved, argued that the hunt had begun after 1:30 pm, when Elisa had already been attacked, in addition to ensuring that their dogs had been trained by professionals to hunt a particular animal and obey the man in any circumstance.
The mystery lasted for several months. Police tested 93 dogs, including some hunting dogs and the woman’s own five dogs.to try establish which ones attacked her. Ultimately, DNA analysis and numerous bite marks on the victim’s body, neck and head matched only Curtis’s profile.
Five years after involuntary manslaughter due to canine attack, Christophe Ellul is accused
Before these forensic results, Crhistophe carried out several campaigns on social networks to prevent the sacrifice of his dog Curtis, who was confined in an animal control center.
He continued to maintain that it was impossible for him to have bitten his partner and demanded more speed in the investigation. The event occurred on November 16, 2019, but it was not until February 2026 that a formal accusation was made against Christophe.
«If Curtis is guilty, kill him or I will, but put the evidence on the table. I lost my wife, I lost my son. «Do you think he would have given Curtis a chance?» the defendant testified in court, denouncing that there were «many inconsistencies» during the investigation.
The judge presiding over the case accused him of illegally importing Curtis from the Netherlands and lying about his race. Ellul presented the dog as a whippet-griffon, but a subsequent veterinary examination concluded that it was actually a American pit bull terrier, the purchase of which is prohibited in France.
They also accused him of having trained Curtis with the «hand target» technique, a method of positive reinforcement used to guide the dog, redirect its attention or teach new behaviors, a practice that is also prohibited in France.
«If taught poorly, it causes the animal to lose all inhibition when excited,» according to court documents. In the next hearings, all the information collected will be analyzed again and a verdict will be determined in a case that is once again capturing national attention in France.
