There is nothing to suggest at this stage that it was a terrorist attack, but it is already a little more than a simple brawl. The public prosecutor of Bordeaux, Frédérique Porterie, gave a detailed update, Thursday April 11 during a press conference, on the investigation opened after the violent knife attack which left one dead and one seriously injured, the watches, on the banks of the Garonne.
Shortly after 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, while many Bordeaux residents were taking advantage of the return of sunny days to have a drink on the lawns bordering the river, a man, dressed “from a qamis (long tunic for men) and a keffiyeh covering his face and allowing only his eyes to be seen”called out two men aged 26 and 37, both born in Algeria, who were sipping beers on the grass in front of the “mirror of water”, a shallow body of water located between the Stock Exchange and the quays.
According to the testimony of the youngest, who survived the attack, the individual blamed them, “in broken French”, to drink alcohol on this day of Eid, a religious holiday which marks the end of Ramadan. The two Algerian friends, one of whom is homeless and the other hosted by the France Terre d’Asile association, allegedly replied: “It’s none of your business. » The attacker then allegedly punched them several times before walking away.
Four shots to the chest
According to several witnesses to the scene, the two friends got up and threw beer cans in his direction. The individual then turns back, takes out a switchblade and stabs them violently. The oldest, Rachid Bouach, received nine stab wounds, including four to the chest which were fatal to him. The youngest, who received three blade wounds, was hospitalized in absolute emergency, but his life is no longer in danger.
The attacker then headed towards the Pierre Bridge, where he crossed paths with a police crew who had just picked up his report on the airwaves. The officials asked him to drop his weapon, but he then, according to several testimonies, walked towards them with a look. ” aggressive “ And “threatening” brandishing his weapon. After having done “usual summons”one of the police officers killed him with three shots with his assault rifle.
No identification papers were found on the assailant’s body. However, according to consultation of the Eurodac database, which contains the digital fingerprints of asylum seekers registered in the Member States of the European Union, “he would be of Afghan origin and aged 25”. Confirmation of his identity, which remains to be verified, will perhaps allow us to find out more about his motive, the magistrate said.
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