French policeman is ARRESTED for shooting dead two unarmed people and wounding another after their car ‘sped towards officers’ in Paris
- The policemen shot dead the driver and front-seat passenger of a car on Sunday
- A third person in the back seat of the Volkswagen Polo was injured by the bullets
- The car sped across Pont Neuf in Paris and refused to stop at a checkpoint
- It set off towards officers who jumped out of the way, before one opened fire
- The shooter was taken into custody yesterday and is being investigated
- Incident took place as partisans of President Macron celebrated his re-election
A French policeman has been arrested and placed in custody after he shot dead two people and injured a third when their car refused to stop at a checkpoint at a popular Parisian tourist site.
The shooting occurred on the ancient Pont Neuf in the heart of the French capital on Sunday night, as partisans of French President Emmanuel Macron celebrated his re-election.
The unidentified officer has admitted opening fire with his police-issue Heckler and Kock G36 assault rifle after the car – a Volkswagen Polo – came speeding towards his patrol on the historic bridge.
An investigating source said the car was speeding away from officers who had jumped out of the way when the policeman in question began shooting.
‘The claim by the officers is that they were being targeted by the car,’ said the source.
‘They got out of the way, and then one of them starting shooting with his Heckler & Koch assault rifle.’
The driver of the car was killed behind the wheel, while the front-seat passenger was shot dead as he leapt from the car and began running away.
A third man, who was in the back seat of the car, was wounded in the arm and is recovering in hospital.
The officer meanwhile was taken into custody and is under investigation for ‘intentional violence resulting in unintentional death,’ said a spokesman for the IGPN – the French police unit that investigates alleged crimes carried out by officers.
The vehicle was driving against traffic on the Pont Neuf in Paris on Sunday night, and was trying to hit the officers, who then opened fire, according to a police source
Police investigate the site of a shooting where two people were shot dead by police in Paris on Sunday night
A dozen shots were fired from the policemen’s HK G36 according to the investigation’s initial reports, of which ‘five or six impacted the individuals’.
None of the unarmed victims involved have been identified, but police say the two individuals who were killed were known to be involved in the drugs trade.
The backseat passenger who is currently recovering in hospital was not known to the police.
Four other officers who were with the shooter are considered key witnesses and have been interviewed at length about the incident.
Meanwhile, a taxi driver who was interviewed at the scene has ‘confirmed the police acted legitimately in self-defence’, according to a police source cited by Le Monde.
A parallel enquiry has been opened by the Paris prosecutor into the ‘attempted killing of public officials’.
The bloodbath happened at around midnight on Sunday, soon after the re-election of French president Emmanuel Macron.
Crowds were in the Pont Neuf area, some of them on the way back from Macron’s victory speech by the Eiffel Tower.
The Pont Neuf dates back to 1578 and is one Paris’ most famous tourist spots, typically bustling with people.
A security perimeter had been set up at the scene in the heart of the capital shortly after the shooting
According to Le Monde, the Volkswagen Polo arrived at Pont Neuf with its hazard lights illuminated and came to a stop close to the checkpoint.
When police officers approached the car, it launched ‘at speed towards one of the officials who jumped aside to avoid the oncoming vehicle.’
There was no return of fire from those inside the car, none of whom are thought to have been armed.
‘It seems that they were simply in a car that was being driven erratically,’ said a police source.
There were no early clues pointing to a link with the presidential election, or any terrorist acts.
A security perimeter was set up at the scene in the heart of the capital and the public prosecutor Laure Beccuau arrived shortly after.
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