Overview
- Authorities say a 35-year-old resident struck pedestrians and cyclists over several kilometres between Dolus-d’Oléron and Saint‑Pierre‑d’Oléron, with roughly nine to ten people injured.
- The La Rochelle prosecutor reports the suspect cried “Allah Akbar” at arrest and tried to set his car on fire with gas bottles, but the motive is unconfirmed and the national anti-terror office has not taken the case.
- The suspect, known for prior common-law offenses and not listed in the radicalization file, is in custody on suspicion of attempted murder.
- Days earlier in Lille, a 31-year-old was placed under formal investigation and detained for aggravated road homicide after killing 19-year-old Mathis while fleeing a police check, with evidence of contemporaneous nitrous oxide use.
- The two cases are fueling calls for firmer action on refusals to stop and tighter controls on nitrous oxide, as the interior minister orders pursuits and arrests in such incidents.