A Royal Australian Navy sailor who allegedly beat an elderly woman to death after trying drunkenly to break into her Noumea home could face up to 20 years in a New Caledonia jail if convicted.
The unnamed sailor from HMAS Melville allegedly bashed 79-year-old Lysianne Mille repeatedly in the face in the seafront Baie-des-Citrons area of Noumea early last Saturday morning.
She died in hospital several hours after the attack.
The 29-year-old sailor has been charged with "aggravated deadly assault on a particularly vulnerable person" and has been remanded in custody.
He will be subject to French law and the maximum sentence for the charge is 20 years in prison.
New Caledonia police described the assault as very violent and said the sailor had a blood alcohol reading of 0.113 after drinking at clubs in the area all night.
The Noumea newspaper, Les Nouvelles Caledoniennes, said the sailor has told police he did not remember repeatedly hitting Madame Mille.
The paper said Mme Mille went to her front door after hearing the sailor trying to kick in her front door just before dawn on Saturday.
"Mme Mille fell to the ground and the sailor started beating her continually, mainly in the face. She called for help, but her husband was paralysed with fear, and could do nothing," the paper said.
Neighbours heard her cry for help and rang the police.
A newspaper delivery boy and a neighbour came to help and the sailor ran towards the beach where he was captured by the police.
Mme Mille and her husband, who has Alzheimer's disease, celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary last week.
One of the couple's sons, Eric Mille, said he found it hard to believe what had happened.
"The police and the paramedics told us that they have never seen anything like it," he said.
On Sunday afternoon, the sailor faced a tribunal in Noumea and was refused bail. His trial date has yet to be determined.
Australian consular staff will provide the sailor with support.
The Defence Department says Australian officials are cooperating fully with New Caledonia authorities over the charges, while the sailor's family is being offered support by navy and Defence Community Organisation personnel.
HMAS Melville was en route to a site off Fiji to search for the wreckage of the Australian Black Hawk helicopter which crashed into the sea on November 29, killing the pilot and a soldier.
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