Driver who rammed car into crowd on French island was fisherman with ‘history of offending and alcohol problems’
Two people were critically injured when a driver rammed into at least five people during a half-hour rampage at a popular tourist island off France’s Atlantic coast on Wednesday morning.
The male suspect, 35, rammed the vehicle into pedestrians and cyclists on Île d’Oléron at 8.40am before attempting to set fire to his car with a number of gas cylinders inside in a “deliberate act”, according to reports.
Local media reported that the suspect, named as Jean G, had committed previous offences and suffered from mental health issues. He was tasered by French police before being taken into custody in a nearby town while an attempted murder investigation was opened.
The incident prompted anger from several right-wing and far-right politicians in France, who blamed “Islamism” for the attack. French interior minister Laurent Nuñez confirmed that the suspect shouted ‘Allahu Akbar’ while driving but authorities have not involved anti-terrorism police in their investigation.
Instead, they are believed to be looking into the suspect’s psychiatric condition in the lead up to the attack.
The Independent looks at everything we know about the suspect behind the car ramming on Wednesday.
At around 8.45am on Wednesday morning, a driver rammed into several people between Dolus-d’Oleron and Saint-Pierre-d’Oleron, two villages on the island of Oleron, over a 35-minute period.
French authorities say the driver shouted ‘Allahu Akbar’ as he carried out the attack, but police have been unable to establish a clear motive.
Pedestrians and cyclists were hit by the vehicle, with early reports indicating that 10 people had been injured. The toll was later revised to five.
One of the two people who were seriously injured was revealed to be the 22-year-old parliamentary assistant of National Rally MP Pascal Markowsky.
Their lives are no longer in danger but they have been left with “extremely serious injuries”, Mr Nunez said.
National Rally MP Sébastien Chenu declared in a speech at the National Assembly that the “Islamist threat has never been stronger”. He added: “This is a war that must be waged here and now. Our country has already paid a heavy price to Islamism.”
However, it has not been confirmed whether the attack was motivated by Islamic extremism.
The suspect had committed several previous offences, the island’s mayor Christophe Sueur said.
