A man deliberately drove his vehicle into pedestrians near a bar in Caen, western France, on Wednesday night, killing one person and injuring 10 others before authorities detained him, according to multiple sources.
At around 10:15pm local time, the vehicle deliberately struck pedestrians on a public road opposite the city’s railway station, Calvados Prefect David Clavière said after arriving at the scene.
“The toll is heavy, as we have one person who has died, seven people in critical condition and three others in serious condition,” Clavière said.
According to a police source cited by Agence France-Presse, the deadly incident followed an argument.
The driver fled the scene but authorities detained him in Ouistreham, around 20 kilometres from the location of the incident.
The suspect was born in Russia and is not known to intelligence services, Prefect Clavière said. Police had previously dealt with him, but only over traffic violations.
Authorities have launched an investigation and are examining security camera footage to establish exactly what happened.
The prosecutor’s office in Caen said the alleged attacker is 26 years old.
