Superintendent Maigret is sent to Antibes to elucidate the murder of William Brown, a rich Australian who regularly disappeared to indulge in formidable drinking binges. In his footsteps, Maigret makes the rounds of bars until discovering the Liberty Bar, its welcoming patroness La Grosse Jaja and its equivocal clientele. It is without a doubt here that the key to the murder is to be found.