With the best intentions, the Tilly saga is typically presented as a summary, selecting major events he subjected his victims to over more than a decade. It’s time-consuming to list everything in order, but as the case is fascinating, a detailed presentation of his modus operandi is well worth the effort.

In total, Tilly stole around 4.5 million euros from a single aristocratic family, the de Vedrines, by convincing 11 members that through their nobility, they were the targets of secret societies and he alone could protect them. He served 10 years in prison and now resides in a psychiatric institution (according to the latest available information).

As sources I will be using Diabolique, written by Ghislaine and Jean Marchand, and We Were Not Armed, written by Christine de Vedrines.

The immediate victims of Tilly’s fraud (collateral ones being family members estranged from them and anyone affected by their behaviour) were as follows:

  • Guillemette de Vedrines, also referred to as Mamie, the matriarch of the family,
  • Ghislaine Marchand, Mamie’s daughter, her husband Jean and their two children, Francois and Guillemette,
  • Charles-Henri de Vedrines, Mamie’s son, his wife Christine and their three children, Guillaume, Amaury and Diane,
  • Philippe de Vedrines, Mamie’s son, and his partner, Brigitte.

This first post will cover the interactions between Tilly and the de Vedrines between 1997 and 2000.

1997

It’s September and Ghislaine Marchand has just been appointed as headmistress of La Femme Secretaire, a secretarial school for girls in Paris, which her daughter, Guillemette, attends. The school has been struggling financially to remain open. Lawyer Vincent David, whose daughter also attends, is representing the school on legal matters. He introduces Ghislaine to Thierry Tilly, the owner of the cleaning company the school contracted, praising him as an entrepreneur owning multiple businesses. Tilly’s company was only contracted for the month of August, before the start of the school year. Ghislaine is happy with the services and thinks she’ll never meet him again. As she keeps seeing him around for weeks, she learns Vincent David has extended his contract for a year.

Tilly, a man in his 30s, wears a Burberry raincoat and has a “baby face” for his age; Ghislaine finds him unremarkable, forgetting his name.

Later, in a weekly board meeting, Vincent tells Ghislaine that Tilly can help with a legal matter, as he has connections in high places. She is puzzled but she accepts. This happens repeatedly with different issues, without Ghislaine interacting with him personally, always with Vincent as the intermediary. One day she approaches Tilly in passing, to thank him; he offers his help in general. As she needs someone to generate publicity for the school, Tilly is, coincidentally, just about to meet with a friend who can handle it.

He always appears to be in a rush, between important meetings, yet he consistently makes time for Ghislaine, stopping by her office. While he has no immediate answers to her problems, he listens attentively, which flatters and comforts her. He leaves with promises of finding solutions.

In December, Ghislaine’s older sister dies, leaving her and her entire family rather fragile, especially after the passing of her father in 1995. Jean, a journalist, is busy at work and stressed out, seeming constantly preoccupied while at home. Increasingly, Ghislaine relies on Tilly for counsel, instead of her husband.

Notes

In the love-bombing phase, fraudsters and cult leaders are exceptional listeners, predatorily soaking up any information that can be used to exploit the victim, from material details (their wealth, social status, properties etc.) to sensitive ones, such as their state of mind and relationship with family members. Any useful detail is seized upon. Tilly exploits Ghislaine’s stress, caused by having to manage a school for the first time, and her loneliness, caused by her husband’s career demands.

We don’t get any clarification on whether Tilly actually helps with those initial issues, as he most definitely does not have the connections he claims. Perhaps these are some of the unresolved legal issues to resurface later.

1998

During the winter, at the start of the year, it becomes apparent that the school needs new computers. Through Vincent, Tilly offers to help purchase and install them, solidifying Ghislaine’s trust in him through this simple action. He increasingly appears all-powerful to her.

In the summer, the de Vedrines organise their yearly music festival at Monflanquin, Musique en Guyenne. Things go as normal as the family enjoys a break.

In September, on Tilly’s advice, the school changes its name from La Femme Secretaire, which sounds antiquated, to IFSAD (Institut de formation superieure d’assistants de direction). Presumably, this is to make the name sound more pretentious. Tilly suggests the school should enroll foreign students, painting a bold vision of the future to Ghislaine. Gradually, she starts relying on him to make decisions, by seeking approval for her plans.

She confides in him about her home life: her marriage, her family, roots and history included, and current tension between family members. For instance, she reckons her brothers are jealous of Jean for establishing the festival in their fiefdom, Monflanquin, and that they look down on him for not having aristocratic origins. These confessions intensify through the winter between 1998 and 1999. Tilly listens patiently and silently.

Notes

Not wanting to spook his target, Tilly makes himself useful in basic ways, such as purchasing and installing computers. He bides his time gathering more and more information, definitely realising at this stage that the loot could be substantial. Many fraudsters are impatient and grab what they can as quickly as they can, running for the hills before they are discovered. Others are more calculating and plan the best strategy to milk as much as possible.

Tilly feeds her a fantasy regarding the school, which is already in deep financial trouble, lucky to still be operating. Despite all available evidence, Ghislaine believes it could turn into an international school with a glorious future. It’s unknown whether the school would’ve survived without his theft and unfulfilled promises of legal help. At this time, it’s his way of accessing Ghislaine and it has to be maintained.

We also see her increasing dependence on his judgement, as she notes she runs everything by him before making decisions.

1999

Ghislaine discloses information to Tilly about properties owned by her family members, as well as a conflict between her brothers – Philippe, the eldest, a retired Shell executive and Charles-Henri, the youngest, a doctor. Their father’s decision to leave the family chateau, Martel, to Charles-Henri and Christine, sparked a monstrous feud which saw Philippe not speaking to Charles-Henri for a few years, until he bought his own mansion near the castle, rehabilitating his status in his own perception. She also discusses Christine’s wealthy family and inheritance, well-noted by Tilly for later use.

Ghislaine also discusses the cold relationship between her son, Francois, and his father, Jean. Things have been deteriorating for months, as Jean disagrees with Francois’ decision to study commerce.

During the spring of 1999, Tilly visits the school very often, to listen to her and give advice. He arranges the school’s business in the background, in confidential talks with Ghislaine. In private, he is free to pass judgement on other people’s performance and sow distrust in Ghislaine’s eyes towards some of them. Officially, he is still only connected to the school by a cleaning contract. Ghislaine is impressed with Tilly’s benevolence of giving her his precious time, while running about attending important meetings.

When Vincent proposes that Tilly join the school board, Ghislaine thinks he’s too busy and important for such an endeavour, but she agrees. She is convinced his support will turn the school into the international institute she dreams of; plus, she wants his proximity for personal reasons, finding comfort in their talks.

Things go well during the summer. Guillemette is studying and Francois decides to quit commerce and work towards his BTS instead (a two-year post-secondary diploma). He reconciles with his father and things are less tense overall. Ghislaine recalls this particular summer with warmth and fondness.

She mentions her family being split into two “clans”: herself and Jean, and their children, plus Charles-Henri, Christine and theirs on one side, and Philippe and his children, plus the widower and children of her late sister Anne, on the other. This is largely due to an age gap between the eldest, Philippe and Anne, and the youngest, herself and Charles-Henri. She mentions this distinction would later be made by Tilly when deciding who to target (Philippe and Anne’s children won’t be brought into the cult).

In September, Vincent and his wife organise a party at the start of the new school year, where Jean meets Tilly for the first time. Ghislaine is convinced they’ll strike up a friendship. She observes Tilly being introduced to guests by Vincent and even playing football with his son, who looks about 12. She’s impressed by Tilly’s good nature. During the car ride back home, Jean tells her he found Tilly unserious, with his claims of high connections and inside knowledge of political affairs, plus his claim of being a secret agent. Jean describes him as a small man with a baby face, calculated movements and a faux Bill Gates air, who rarely smiles, and when he does, it seems an intentional smirk meant to suggest that he’s concealing something mysterious.

Ghislaine gets angry, but doesn’t react, deciding that she will keep the friendship with Tilly, with all its benefits, to herself. He now becomes Ghislaine’s assistant, her right hand, picking an office for himself near hers. Around the same time, he is also appointed IT manager and director of the school.

In October, Tilly meets Francois, whom he again listens carefully to, leaving a very good impression on the 20-year-old. Tilly seems more empathetic than his father. He tries to convince Francois to transfer to IFSAD for his BTS. He takes him out to see the new James Bond movie, and afterwards, for a drink, explaining that he is a real version of James Bond, but doesn’t kill people “at his level” – rather, he engages in political machinations. He takes responsibility for having pressured Dominique Strauss-Khan to resign. He then points out Francois Hollande, who happens to be there, assuring the young man he will lower his gaze while passing their table. It happens. The young man is instantly fascinated and convinced of Tilly’s power.

Soon after, Tilly is in need of accommodation and Vincent suggests he should move into the school groundskeeper’s lodge, which is unoccupied. Ghislaine accepts. At the same time, Vincent has been pestering Tilly for weeks to return some money he borrowed, but never sees it back. Ghislaine will later reflect on the crucial role Vincent played in Tilly’s infiltration into their family, and why at this point Vincent still couldn’t see that his friend was a crook.

At the end of autumn, Tilly renovates the lodge by having a shower cabin and a new kitchen fitted. Ghislaine thinks he chose the lodge in order to be discreet, as a secret agent. Tilly keeps dressing impeccably, in expensive suits, and must be living in such a humble abode as a cover. Some time later, he tells Ghislaine that the school needs a security guard, as he has new information, making the matter urgent, and that he will handle the hiring process.

He starts talking about the freemasons and how they mean to cause her harm; Ghislaine is shocked and knows almost nothing about them, only having a nebulous recollection of them being disparaged in church when she was a child. He tells her they are everywhere, including inside the school, which leaves her more shocked still. He claims he moved in such close proximity to protect her from them. He then turns up with a Polish family (a couple, a child and a dog), installing them in the school’s basement. Jacek is the new security guard.

Tilly tells Ghislaine that his boss visits the school on a regular basis, to check the security measures he has implemented to protect her. The boss’ identity must remain secret and Ghislaine cannot meet him; furthermore, she should leave the building whenever he’s meant to attend. In fact, he orders her to leave ten minutes before the scheduled meeting and not turn around once she reaches the sidewalk. He repeats this on multiple occasions and she obeys. She is both fascinated and scared that such secretive meetings are being held insider her school.

One evening, Tilly asks her to walk with him to the basement, explaining that during WWII, it had been used by the Germans to commit atrocities, especially in the caverns. He points out that the German embassy is located right across the street, and this is no coincidence.

As soon as they get back to her office, he tells her he’s leaving for England, to recruit foreign students, and asks her for a cheque for 5.300 euros as fees for his “mission”. He claims the number of students attending will double for the next school year. He goes on to take several trips to England, without reporting any progress on student recruitment, yet she believes and trusts him.

Between September of 1999 and early 2000, a conflict grows between Tilly and Agnes, the educational director, whom Ghislaine has always valued. Agnes has never trusted Tilly, after having him introduced as a secret agent outright. She refuses to work with him, doubting his honesty and competence. In February of 2000, Agnes is suddenly told by Tilly that she has five minutes to clear her desk and vacate the premises. He hands her a termination letter. She will later take the school to court for unjust firing and be awarded compensation. In 2009, she will describe the period to investigators as follows:

“We couldn’t heat up the school as the oil tank was empty. When I would tell Ghislaine that it had to be refilled, she would respond that the Jews and the freemasons had syphoned it and it was all a Judeo-masonic plot. She would say the same thing about the phone. When it functioned, we were being listened to, and when not, they had cut it off.”

Towards the end of 1999, Tilly tries warming up to Jean, which is patently not reciprocated. As Jean’s publication was sued for copyright infringement, over its name, and Jean lost the lawsuit, having to stop publishing for a while, Tilly makes proposition after proposition of helping him, using his money and connections. He invites Jean out and lets him pay for the meal and taxi, then takes him to see offices suitable for relaunching his magazine. Jean quickly tells him he’s not interested. Asking Vincent about Tilly, Jean is reassured again of his good character. He decides to keep away from the issue, concluding it’s Ghislaine’s business and he will not interfere.

Notes

At this stage, Ghislaine is taking orders from Tilly, who now commandeers the physical space of the school she is running. She obeys him blindly, by leaving and returning when he tells her to, to facilitate his secretive meetings. Tilly doesn’t have anyone over, obviously, as he doesn’t have a “boss” – he is simply training her to obey his commands at the drop of a hat.

Tilly’s grip on her is so tight that she accepts Agnes’ firing, in favour of retaining the services of someone whose competence she has seen no proof of (that she mentions), unlike that of Agnes. The fantasy has overtaken her reality. Tilly is known to French authorities at this point and her complete trust proves she hasn’t run any checks on him.

In fact, the secret agent caper would involve his endeavours being obscure by default. Accepting this narrative entails complete abandon to it and deprives her of the regular tools she can use to verify other people’s past or competence. Tilly has now set himself apart from regular society and the rules governing it.

Her delusional mindset is also shown by the ease with which she relays his claims to other people, as if they were plausible, such as the one about Jews and masons emptying the school’s oil tank and tapping the landline. Not too long before buying into this narrative, she deemed Tilly too important to work at a measly secretarial school. All of a sudden, her school is in fact very important and worthy of plots from multiple sides. Is this perhaps somewhat exciting, a break from the mundane? Is it a way to justify the school failing financially, a persistent worry, by blaming it on outside forces?

By the end of 1999, Tilly has “bagged” two members, Ghislaine and Francois. Things will unfold at a rapid pace from 2000 onwards.

To be continued in the next post.