5 months ago
25
NEW DELHI: In a startling incident near Normandy's Rouen, two
French prison officers
lost their lives when a prison van was ambushed. The van, transporting prisoner
Mohamed Amra
, also known as "The Fly," was rammed by a car at a toll booth while en route from court to prison.
Following the collision, gunmen opened fire on the prison officers, resulting in the death of two officers and leaving two others in critical condition.
A large-scale manhunt involving several hundred police officers and gendarmes has been initiated to apprehend the perpetrators. French President
Emmanuel Macron
expressed his commitment to finding those responsible, saying on X that "everything is being done to find the perpetrators".
Prosecutors have identified the escaped inmate as Mohamed Amra, a 30-year-old born in 1994. Amra, who has ties to a gang in Marseille, a city grappling with drug-related gang violence, was convicted of burglary on May 10 and had been indicted for a kidnapping that resulted in a death. The ambush occurred around 11:00 (09:00 GMT) near a toll booth on the A154 motorway as Amra was being transported back to jail in Évreux after attending a court hearing in Rouen.
French Justice Minister
Eric Dupond-Moretti
confirmed that the officers were shot with "heavy weapons" by the prisoner's accomplices. The attackers fled the scene in a car, which police believe has been recovered, abandoned near the toll gate where the attack took place.
Roadblocks have been set up across north-west France, and police are following up on every lead.
In a press conference following a crisis unit meeting, Mr. Dupond-Moretti shared the tragic personal details of the deceased officers, with one leaving behind a wife and two children who were meant to celebrate their 21st birthday in two days, and the other leaving a wife who is five months pregnant.
He vowed that "Everything - and I mean everything - will be put in place to find the perpetrators of this vile crime," and that they would be punished "in a way that is proportionate to the crime".
