Yeah, it is implied it is the girlfriend who let him out. Most likely the dude (Akim) just hightailed it after he was released because he knew he was going to be a murder suspect.

To be honest a lot of it didn't really make any sense to me. Like, let's just say that the ex-cop had some reason to suspect that Damon had some dude kidnapped, why would he suspect that he was in the basement of his apartment complex of all places? Secondly, why would a large police force be there to check the basement based on his suspicion if he didn't even have any proof the dude might be there? If they have some reason to suspect Damon has kidnapped the killer, why do they just give up when the basement is empty? Then there's the whole part of finding the killer. You just know as soon as they enter the stadium that he is going to spot the killer there, and much to nobody's surprise he finds him there. So, he is so dedicated to his daughter that he decides to stay in Marseille permanently and knows the rough location of where the suspected killer hangs around and lives and what he looks like, but doesn't just stake out his car there every once in a while and just gives up on his daughter, but months later when he just spots the dude among a group of thousands and thousands of people he kidnaps him just like that. Then there's the whole DNA sample thing. The judge mentions that a retired cop came up with a DNA sample that matched the DNA from the crime scene, but why would it matter that they had another sample of some unknown persons DNA if they couldn't actually somehow link him to the crime, and in this case they don't mention his name or anything so it seems like they have nothing on the guy except his DNA sample. It also doesn't make sense how the judge says that they now somehow magically linked the DNA sample to a burglary case that happened before. Why would having another sample of an unknown person's DNA lead it to being linked to a previous crime, if the earlier sample didn't? The police do have a database for this kind of stuff obviously.

aholejones, I agree with your analysis. Too many plotholes and inconsistencies.

Even if the "fruit of the poisonous tree" rule does not exist in France, the conduct of the cops seems very improper and sloppy. For instance, they didn't even have a warrant to search the basement and to interrogate Bill, Virginie and her daughter.

Is it just me or is there just more and more logical inconsistencies in movies nowadays..

@Markoff wrote:

It was French girlfriend (Virginie?) who let Akim out of basement?

Yes, it was her. She got suspicious when the private detective (= ex-cop) was snooping around her apartment complex and asked her questions about the basement. (What she didn't know is that her daugther Maya also knew about him and that she promised Bill she wouldn't tell anybody.)

What really the girl told to Akim, to kill her or just throw her out of apartment?

The weird thing is that Lina's murder might have been a result of a simple but tragic misunderstanding between Allison and Akim. At the end, Allison confesses to her dad that Akim told her that he would just help her to get Lina out of the apartment - not to kill her. That's her version of the events. But when Akim confesses earlier, he says to Bill twice in broken English that Allison asked him "to put Lina out" and that he should "do a hit - make her go - make her go out." That's his version of the events. Of course, we as viewers don't know if Allison and/or Akim are lying -> but there is a possibility that Akim misunderstood Allisons request to "put Lina out." I'm not sure this is intended by the filmmaker - but I interpret it this way. It makes this all so much more tragic, at least for me.

@aholejones wrote:

Like, let's just say that the ex-cop had some reason to suspect that Damon had some dude kidnapped, why would he suspect that he was in the basement of his apartment complex of all places?

Because the ex-cop, who is the private detective that Bill asked to check the DNA sample, was snooping around the apartment complex before and took a look. And when he talked to Virginie outside, pretending to check the building, he specifically asked her about the basement and she stalled. That's when he basically knew. It's routine and clever police/detective work, in my opinion.

Secondly, why would a large police force be there to check the basement based on his suspicion if he didn't even have any proof the dude might be there?

Because the ex-cop, now private detective, was good friends with the leading cop who interrogated Bill, Virginie and Maya later. There was a scene earlier when they and a bunch of others played cards together and discussed the case - signaling that they know each other very well and cooperate.

If they have some reason to suspect Damon has kidnapped the killer, why do they just give up when the basement is empty?

Well, they didn't really give up when they saw that the basement was empty. After that, they shortly questioned Virginie, and after that they questioned Maya, a young girl who (in their mind) is probably not capable to lie under such pressure. Sure, they could've called an expert and took DNA samples from the basement - but, apparently, Maya was too convincing and they stopped.

Then there's the whole part of finding the killer. You just know as soon as they enter the stadium that he is going to spot the killer there, and much to nobody's surprise he finds him there. So, he is so dedicated to his daughter that he decides to stay in Marseille permanently and knows the rough location of where the suspected killer hangs around and lives and what he looks like, but doesn't just stake out his car there every once in a while and just gives up on his daughter, but months later when he just spots the dude among a group of thousands and thousands of people he kidnaps him just like that.

It is implied earlier that he does indeed drive around in the assumed neighborhood of the suspected killer; there are a few scenes with him in the car, showing those high buildings of the apartment complex. I understood those scenes to be standing for his continued search, even when Allison explicitly told him to stop and find his peace. Also, I think he changed his view on the whole matter once he felt more and more comfortable with Virginie and Maya - it kind of vanished from his mind. Not completely, but slowly, he was finding his peace with a "new family." Until he saw the guy again, which was just a conicidence that happened. However, I do have to admit that when Maya found the tickets for the game, I knew that Bill was going to spot Akim there. That was indeed a bit lame.

Then there's the whole DNA sample thing. The judge mentions that a retired cop came up with a DNA sample that matched the DNA from the crime scene, but why would it matter that they had another sample of some unknown persons DNA if they couldn't actually somehow link him to the crime, and in this case they don't mention his name or anything so it seems like they have nothing on the guy except his DNA sample.

The woman who is talking to Bill is not the judge, it's Allisons lawyer, Maitre Leparq. She brings Bill the good news from the judge about the new evidence - but he already knows. Because the retired cop that she mentions is the ex-cop again, the guy that Bill hired as the private investigator -> so the new evidence that he brought to the police's/judge's attention is in fact the sample that Bill gave him earlier in the café. So, now the police had a matching DNA sample from the crime scene, which meant that there was a different person at the scene when Lina's murder happened.

It also doesn't make sense how the judge says that they now somehow magically linked the DNA sample to a burglary case that happened before. Why would having another sample of an unknown person's DNA lead it to being linked to a previous crime, if the earlier sample didn't? The police do have a database for this kind of stuff obviously.

Yes, indeed, they have a database. But the burglary was after Allison's trial, so this specific DNA sample was added to the database after the police checked for a match in Allison's case. At the time of Allison's trial, there was no other match for the unknown DNA on the crime scene - and most likely nobody checked inbetween because Allison's case was closed. But now, when they checked again -> 3 matching samples from different places, and one of them was from a burglary. So, the ultimate question: What if Lina's murder was also done by the same burglar and he got away? For the lawyer, finding the killer is irrelevant, as she explains to Bill: "All we need to prove is sufficient doubt." So, with the new evidence, Allison isn't the only suspect for Lina's murder anymore. And that's why she was released - there was enough doubt that she actually did it.