10 injured in ramming on French island of Oleron; suspect yells ‘Allahu Akbar’
4 in serious condition; investigators reportedly examining if suspect, a French national known to police for petty crime, had mental health issues
A 35-year-old man rammed his car into pedestrians and cyclists on Wednesday on the French Atlantic island of Oleron, wounding 10 people, four of them seriously, a prosecutor said.
The Oleron resident “deliberately hit several pedestrians and cyclists” along a main road on the scenic island off the western city of La Rochelle, prosecutor Arnaud Laraize said.
The suspect shouted “Allahu Akbar” (Arabic for “God is Greatest”) when arrested, Laraize said.
Police are investigating him for alleged attempted murder but the man’s motive was not immediately clear, Laraize added.
The Le Parisien newspaper said investigators were looking into the possibility that the suspect had mental health issues.
The man was previously known to police for petty crime including driving while drunk, as well as drug-related offenses, local newspaper Charente Libre and other French media reported, citing the mayor of Saint-Pierre d’Oleron, Christophe Sueur.
Charente Libre newspaper named the suspect as Jacques G and said he was French. It did not cite its sources.
A source following the case said the man had “deliberately hit” the victims, across several kilometers (miles).
The prosecutor said the ramming occurred on a road joining the towns of Dolus d’Oleron and Saint-Pierre d’Oleron.