Bezu Fache
Bezu Fache, captain of the Direction Centrale Police Judiciaire (DCPJ), is the formidable law-enforcement figure who dominates the investigation into the murder of Louvre curator Jacques Saunière. Known by the epithet "le Taureau" (the Bull), Fache is a physically imposing, intensely religious, and relentlessly methodical officer whose single-minded conviction that Robert Langdon is the murderer propels the novel's early tension and nearly leads to a catastrophic miscarriage of justice.
Identity and Introduction
Fache is introduced as a stocky, dark man with a Neanderthal build, dressed in a dark double-breasted suit that strains over his wide shoulders. He moves with "unmistakable authority on squat, powerful legs" and speaks in a guttural rumble "like a gathering storm" . His appearance is further described as that of an "angry ox," with slicked-back dark hair accentuating an arrow-like widow's peak, and dark eyes that "seemed to scorch the earth before them" . He wears a silver crux gemmata tie clip—a cross bearing thirteen gems representing Christ and the apostles—which broadcasts his Christian faith openly . His nickname, "le Taureau," is noted by his driver, who explains that the French call their captain the Bull . Fache's official title is Captain of the Central Directorate Judicial Police .
Investigation and Interrogation
Fache orchestrates a "surveillance cachée"—a covert observation—against Langdon, inviting him to the crime scene as a suspect rather than a consultant, hoping he will incriminate himself . He has Langdon fitted with a GPS tracking dot, slipped into his jacket pocket by the agent who picked him up from the hotel . Throughout their tour of the Grand Gallery, Fache records their conversation via a miniature microphone connected to a transmitter in his pocket . He deliberately withholds the final line of Saunière's message—"P.S. Find Robert Langdon"—from Langdon, wiping it clean before the professor arrives . Fache's interrogation is pointed and skeptical; he presses Langdon on the nature of his planned meeting with Saunière, the topic of Langdon's unpublished manuscript on goddess worship, and whether they had ever corresponded . He is visibly displeased when Sophie Neveu, a cryptographer from his own department, interrupts the interview and reveals that she has deciphered the numeric code as the Fibonacci sequence, which she dismisses as a "mathematical prank" .
Motives and Character
Fache's relentless pursuit of Langdon is driven by a combination of professional pressure and personal conviction. He is under scrutiny from the Board of Ministers and the media for his aggressive tactics and budget overruns, and a high-profile arrest would silence his critics and secure his pension . He is also a devout Catholic who attends mass and confession with "zealous regularity" . His religious fervor is evident in his outspoken condemnation of the Catholic pedophilia scandal, declaring that priests should be "hanged twice"—once for their crimes against children and once for shaming the Church . This piety makes him predisposed to interpret Saunière's pentacle as a symbol of devil worship, a misconception Langdon corrects . Fache's pride is a central flaw; he wants personal credit for the arrest, ordering Lieutenant Collet to wait for him before storming Teabing's estate, a delay that allows Langdon and Sophie to escape . He is also deeply suspicious of the U.S. Embassy, which he feels emasculates the Judicial Police by extraditing guilty American citizens for lenient treatment .
Relationships and Conflict
Fache's relationship with Sophie Neveu is fraught with tension. He views her as a "mistake" foisted on him by the ministry's push for gender equality, believing women lack the physicality for police work and pose a distraction . He is furious when she interferes with his interrogation of Langdon, and he immediately suspects her of tipping off the professor about the GPS dot . After she helps Langdon escape, Fache flags her as a fugitive alongside Langdon, vowing to run her employment file and ensure she loses far more than her job . His relationship with Lieutenant Collet is that of a commanding officer who demands absolute obedience; Collet is both awed by Fache's instincts and fearful of his wrath . Fache's interactions with Langdon are adversarial from the start, marked by a cold, interrogative tone and a refusal to accept Langdon's explanations of the pentacle's pagan symbolism .
Change and Ending
Fache's certainty in Langdon's guilt begins to waver when he discovers that Sophie Neveu is Saunière's granddaughter and that she has been acting to protect Langdon . He later learns that the three additional murders—the sénéchaux—have occurred, and that Langdon and Sophie have retrieved a box from Saunière's bank account . After Teabing's arrest, Fache acknowledges his mistake, telling Sophie that he made "a terrible mistake" and that all charges against Langdon have been dropped . He admits to errors in judgment and expresses concern that his career will be over if his mistakes result in deaths . In the aftermath, Fache visits Bishop Aringarosa in the hospital, returning the briefcase of Vatican bonds and agreeing to distribute the funds to the families of the deceased . He hints at his own uncertain future, suggesting he will retire early, to which Aringarosa offers a blessing: "A little faith can do wonders" .
Narrative Role and Evaluation
Fache functions as the primary obstacle and source of external pressure for Langdon and Sophie throughout the first half of the novel. His relentless pursuit forces them into a fugitive state, driving the plot's chase sequences and heightening the stakes. He is a classic "flat" character in E. M. Forster's sense—built around a single, recognizable idea of rigid, religiously motivated law enforcement—yet he is given enough backstory and motivation to avoid becoming a mere caricature. His eventual admission of error and his role in returning the bonds to Aringarosa provide a measure of redemption, though his character remains fundamentally unchanged: a proud, devout, and effective policeman who was temporarily blinded by his own convictions.
