2014 Nantes attack
2014 Nantes attack | |
---|---|
The Place Royale Christmas market one year after the attack | |
Location of Loire-Atlantique within France | |
Location | Place Royale, Nantes, France |
Date | 22 December 2014 |
Target | Civilians |
Attack type | Vehicular assault |
Weapons | White van |
Deaths | 1 |
Non-fatal injuries | 10 (including the suspect) |
Victim | Virgile Porcher |
Perpetrator | Sébastien Sarron |
Motive | Suspected mental unbalance |
On 22 December 2014, Sébastien Sarron ran over ten pedestrians in his white van at the Christmas market of the French city of Nantes, and then attempted suicide by stabbing himself. Ten people, including the suspect, suffered non-fatal injuries, and one person, a man by the name of Virgile Porcher, was pronounced clinically dead the following day.[1]
The attack came a day after a similar automotive attack on pedestrians in Dijon, and two days after a stabbing attack inside a police station in Joué-lès-Tours. Although the three attacks were treated as unrelated, the French government deployed 300 soldiers onto the nation's streets to heighten security afterwards.[2][3]
Suspect
French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said that the attacker in Nantes was "unbalanced".[2] There were initial reports that the attacker had shouted Allahu Akbar ("God is Great"), however, police stated that a notebook in his van contained "incoherent suicidal phrases",[4] and his fear of being murdered by the secret services.[5] A test found 1.80 g of alcohol per litre of blood, four times the maximum legal rate.[6]
The driver was Sébastien Sarron, a 38-years-old farmer from Berneuil near Saintes, Charente-Maritime,[7] After tending his wounds, he was transferred to a psychiatric hospital on 31 December.[6] In January 2015 he was transferred to prison.[6] He was described as a loner, an alcoholic and paranoiac, but was declared by a psychiatrist as responsible enough to be tried.[1] He hanged himself in his isolation cell at the Nantes-Carquefou prison on the early morning of 13 April 2016.[1][5]
Reaction
Interior Ministry spokesman Pierre-Henry Brandet announced an investigation into the Nantes attack, saying "I wouldn't say it was a terrorist attack. I would call it a deliberate act".
François Hollande, the President of France, ordered an emergency cabinet meeting as a result of the attack in Nantes.
Manuel Valls, the Prime Minister of France, aimed to reassure the French public that their concerns over the incidents would be listened to by the government.[2]
According to the Globe and Mail, the attack was "apparently inspired by a video" circulated by ISIL calling on French Muslims to attack non-Muslims using vehicles.[8]
See also
References
- 1 2 3 (in French) Le chauffard du marché de Noël de Nantes s'est suicidé en prison, Le Parisien, 13 April 2016.
- 1 2 3 "France to deploy soldiers after spate of attacks". BBC News. 23 December 2014. Retrieved 26 December 2014.
- ↑ Chow, Jason (23 December 2014). "French Leaders Seek to Reassure Public After Attacks". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 7 February 2017.
- ↑ Samuel, Henry (22 December 2014). "Man rams van into Christmas market in western France". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 26 December 2014.
- 1 2 (in French) Nantes: L'homme qui avait foncé sur la foule lors du marché de Noël s'est suicidé en prison, F.B., 20 minutes, 13 April 2016.
- 1 2 3 (in French) Drame de Nantes : le chauffard charentais-maritime écroué à la maison d’arrêt, Sudouest, 14 January 2015.
- ↑ (in French) Camionnette folle à Nantes. Il fauche 10 personnes au marché de Noël, 'Ouest France', 23 December 2014.
- ↑ Martin, Patrick (15 July 2016). "History of lone-wolf vehicle attacks suggests risk of emulation is very rea". Globe and Mail. Retrieved 15 July 2016.