A French-Tunisian criminal well known to the police for armed attacks used a hired lorry to kill at least 84 people in a terrorist attack during Bastille Day celebrations in Nice, it has emerged.
Many children were among the dead in the Riviera city following a "cowardly and barbaric" atrocity believed to have been carried out by a 30-year-old attacker, who left at least one British national among the injured.
As hundreds remained in hospital, including 18 fighting for their lives in intensive care, anti-terrorist judges opened an investigation into "mass murder" and investigators searched the home of the driver in the Abattoirs area of Nice.
Sources close to the inquiry said the perpetrator was a local 30-year-old career criminal who was born in Tunisia before moving to France.
His 19 tonne lorry had zigzagged through crowds massing on the Promenade des Anglais on Thursday night, killing anyone he could.
After being stopped by armed police, who fired bullets into the lorry’s windscreen, the so far unnamed man exchanged fire with officers using a 7.65 pistol, before being shot dead.
"He was known to the police for violence, and using weapons, but had no direct links with terrorism," said an investigating source. "His identity car was found in the lorry. He had French and Tunisian nationality."
A search of the vehicle uncovered a pistol, a larger gun, and a number of fake weapons and grenades.
The fact that the killer was known to the authorities will be of grave concern to those trying to prevent terrorist attacks in France.
A recent Paris parliamentary investigation into last year’s attacks identified multiple failings by France’s intelligence agencies.
Many children were among the dead in the Riviera city following a "cowardly and barbaric" atrocity believed to have been carried out by a 30-year-old attacker, who left at least one British national among the injured.
As hundreds remained in hospital, including 18 fighting for their lives in intensive care, anti-terrorist judges opened an investigation into "mass murder" and investigators searched the home of the driver in the Abattoirs area of Nice.
Sources close to the inquiry said the perpetrator was a local 30-year-old career criminal who was born in Tunisia before moving to France.
His 19 tonne lorry had zigzagged through crowds massing on the Promenade des Anglais on Thursday night, killing anyone he could.
After being stopped by armed police, who fired bullets into the lorry’s windscreen, the so far unnamed man exchanged fire with officers using a 7.65 pistol, before being shot dead.
"He was known to the police for violence, and using weapons, but had no direct links with terrorism," said an investigating source. "His identity car was found in the lorry. He had French and Tunisian nationality."
A search of the vehicle uncovered a pistol, a larger gun, and a number of fake weapons and grenades.
The fact that the killer was known to the authorities will be of grave concern to those trying to prevent terrorist attacks in France.
A recent Paris parliamentary investigation into last year’s attacks identified multiple failings by France’s intelligence agencies.
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