France - Armed gunman holding 70 monks hostage Montpellier, 24 November 2016

[gregjrichards]

Breaking News

"A masked gunman is reportedly holding more than 70 monks hostage in Montpellier, France.

Local residents claim the armed man stormed a retirement home but they are unsure of his motives.

At least 70 monks reside in the home and police are at the scene.
The gunman is still believed to be in the building with a knife and a sawn-off shotgun.

Armed police were surrounding the building in southern France.
'An individual, who was masked and armed with a knife and a sawn-off shotgun came into the retirement home where 70 monks live,' one source said, adding that the man's motivations were unknown.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...ks-near-Montpellier-France.html#ixzz4QyBjAygp

 

[gregjrichards]

Update Man and Woman dead & retirement home surrounded by anti-terror police.

A man and a woman are dead and more than 70 monks are being held hostage by a masked man with a knife and sawn-off shotgun in in Montpellier, France.

Local residents claim the armed man stormed a retirement home at around 9.45pm but they are unsure of his motives.

At least 70 monks reside in the home in Montferrier-sur-Lez, north of the city.
The gunman is still believed to be in the building which is surrounded by anti-terror police.


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...ks-near-Montpellier-France.html#ixzz4QyEnkJhR
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook

 

[sweetcaro]

This is awful.

Sent from my SM-T550 using Tapatalk

 

[wfgodot]

Quelle horreur!

 

[gregjrichards]

"Those killed are thought to be a woman supervisor, and a man who was working with her."

and

"Shots were heard and there were reports of manager of the home being tied up and gagged by the intruder, who was wearing a balaclava and carrying a shot gun and knife."

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...ks-near-Montpellier-France.html#ixzz4QyKGtowI

Latest details.

Sky News UK reporting 16 people have been evacuated from the building so far. Armed police are inside.

Daily Mail at link above now says there are reports of an elderly woman working in building has been stabbed multiple times.

'59 residents rescued'

59 residents of the nursing home have been “made safe”, a source close to the investigation told AFP.

Suspect still at large

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/montpellier-terror-attack-live-updates-9330432

Building sweep complete but gunman still at large

 

[ZaZara]

Can't think of anyone at all who might want to attack a retirement home for catholic priests and elderly missionaries.

All hostages are free and the killer is at large - wonder where he will strike next.


:stormingmad:

 

[ZaZara]

website of the retirement home:

http://www.missions-africaines.net/residents-des-chenes-verts-a-montferrier/

 

[gregjrichards]

Latest news

Siege ends with around 60 residents safe

“One woman, a resident was assassinated. The security forces have evacuated the residents, about 60, who are safe and sound,” a local official told Reuters.

The home houses retired missionaries that had worked in Africa as well as a few nuns.

“Nothing at this stage would indicate that this would be a terrorist act,” another source said.

He added that the suspect had fled before security forces arrived."

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/montpellier-terror-attack-live-updates-9330432

Latest news

Suspect fled before police arrived

The elderly female victim fled the retirement home and raised the alarm before succumbing to her injuries.

A source told Reuters that the suspect, who was armed with a knife and a sawn-off shotgun, fled the scene before security services arrived.

 

[ZaZara]

Very confusing news, or no-news.
There is one victim, a woman who was stabbed 3 times.
Other sources speak about two victims, the woman and a man who also worked there, though some say he was an elderly resident.
The woman managed to alert the police discreetly (?) before she was gagged and stabbed OR another woman alerted the police.

Chaos. The night will be long.

 

[CoverMeCagney]

What the heck? Monks?!

Whatever next...

 

[gregjrichards]

Very confusing news, or no-news.
There is one victim, a woman who was stabbed 3 times.
Other sources speak about two victims, the woman and a man who also worked there, though some say he was an elderly resident.
The woman managed to alert the police discreetly (?) before she was gagged and stabbed OR another woman alerted the police.

Chaos. The night will be long.

Apologies it is difficult in fast changing situations like this because the facts always change after posting them. I'm just glad the number of fatalities isn't higher but it is very sad one lady has died. Hope they find this guy.

 

[ZaZara]

Apologies it is difficult in fast changing situations like this because the facts always change after posting them. I'm just glad the number of fatalities isn't higher but it is very sad one lady has died. Hope they find this guy.

No need to apologize ... i might as well apologize too then.


Certain channels on Telegram are having a field day with #Montpellier and the fires in Israel.

 

[ZaZara]

Reuters:

Police are searching for an armed man after finding a dead woman in a retirement home where some 60 missionaries are living in southwestern France, sources close to the matter said on Friday.

According to one source, a caretaker contacted the police after freeing herself up after being bound and gagged by the suspect and escaping from the home in Montferrier-sur-Lez about 10 kilometers in the countryside north of Montpellier.

On entering the building, police found the body of a woman who had been stabbed several times, the source said.

http://www.reuters.com/article/us-f...=Feed:+Reuters/worldNews+(Reuters+World+News)

Still unclear if the woman who warned the police (escaping from the home) is the same person as the woman who was stabbed to death and found inside the building.

Was she the intended victim? OR Did she prevent a massacre?

 

[ZaZara]

SUSPECT IDENTIFIED

LePoint
http://www.lepoint.fr/societe/herau...rce=Twitter&link_time=1480071418#xtor=CS1-32-[Echobox]

According to Europe 1, a car was found at 200 meters from the retirement home with a weapon inside. A hundred members of the Raid and the GIGN were still mobilized to find the fugitive this morning.

Handgun handgun

It was by searching the surroundings that the gendarmes were able to get their hands on a suspicious vehicle. According to LCI, a "soft air" type handgun was found during a search of one of the cars in the vicinity. However, in his testimony to the police, the aide-carer who gave the alert evoked rather a "sawed cannon".

A man has been identified

At a press conference, the prosecutor of the Republic of Montpellier said that a suspect has been identified. "As things stand, there is no connection whatsoever with Islamic terrorism," he said, adding that the "local" trail in the entourage of the victim was given priority. The victim, aged 54, had been working for several years in the institution. One hundred and thirty policemen and gendarmes actively search for the suspect.


BBM

Looks lik the victim was the intened target, not the elderly monks.
The woman who raised the alarm is a co-worker.

 

[ZaZara]

https://twitter.com/DirectActus

A fake machine gun was found in a car near the crime scene.

The wanted man was seen with a weapon of this type.

A wanted - notice was issued to the police, the man is qualified as "dangerous.

According to witnesses, the suspect would be a former soldier, about forty years of age living nearby


BBM

 

[ZaZara]

HUSBAND OF THE VICTIM SPEAKS

http://www.huffingtonpost.fr/2016/1...ison-de-retraite-montferrier-sur-lez-herault/

On RTL, her husband Georges agreed to speak out, pointing to the lack of security in this EHPAD (housing facility for dependent elderly). "She was a caregiver," he said, explaining she had "no problem" with anyone. "She was a person of incredible kindness ... how could any hurt her like that?" he asked before he called himself "destroyed".

When asked about the security of this establishment, the man replied that it was "not at all" protected. "We had talked about that, and I told them, 'Anybody can go in there', and that is what happened," he said. "There was nothing to protect them, there was no alarm, no guard," he said.

BBM

 

[ZaZara]

A FORMER SOLDIER OF 47 YEARS; PARTNER BROUGHT IN FOR QUESTIONING

Midi Libre
http://www.midilibre.fr/2016/11/24/...anche-dans-une-maison-de-retraite,1430367.php


The wanted man, of about 47 years, would live in the area of Montferrier-les-Lez, according to a source close to the investigation. Military certificates were also found in his car, the prosecutor said.

According to information from Midi Libre, searches were carried out by the gendarmerie brigade of Castelnau-le-Lez in a neighboring village of Montferrier-le-Lez. Access to the targeted neighborhood was blocked by law enforcement. The investigative section would have continued to probe discreetly in the homes of the municipality.

According to our information, the gendarmes took the suspect's companion from her home and brought her in so she could be heard as a witness.

BBM

 

[ZaZara]

WANTED MAN IS NOT A PROFESSIONAL SOLDIER, BUT UNEMPLOYED FATHER OF 2 WHO REPAIRS BICYCLES

LePoint
http://www.lepoint.fr/societe/herau...rce=Twitter&link_time=1480068441#xtor=CS1-32-[Echobox]


Military certificates helped identify a 47-year-old man living about ten kilometers from the scene of the drama. This father of two children has served in army as a paratrooper, but he is not a professional soldier, sources close to the investigation told AFP.
Unemployed, he lived on small jobs, notably by repairing bicycles.

At the press conference, the deputy commander of the gendarmerie for the Occitane region, Jean-Philippe Lecouffre, recalled that "this man remains dangerous and so it is important, if ever he was spotted, to be cautious and alert the Gendarmerie."


BBM

 

[ZaZara]

SUSPECT IS FORMER CARE WORKER OF RETIREMENT HOME

E-Metropolitain
http://e-metropolitain.fr/2016/11/25/tueur-de-montferrier-ancen-aide-soignant-de-maison-de-retraite/


The suspect is a former care worker of the retirement home and knows the premises well.

The police are trying to establish a motive.

They have questioned the partner of the man and their son. They aim to make them contact the fugitive and convince him to turn himself in.


BBM

 

[gregjrichards]

SUSPECT IS FORMER CARE WORKER OF RETIREMENT HOME

E-Metropolitain
http://e-metropolitain.fr/2016/11/25/tueur-de-montferrier-ancen-aide-soignant-de-maison-de-retraite/


The suspect is a former care worker of the retirement home and knows the premises well.

The police are trying to establish a motive.

They have questioned the partner of the man and their son. They aim to make them contact the fugitive and convince him to turn himself in.


BBM

I wonder if it's to do with an employment dispute like being fired. Hope they catch this guy before anyone else is attacked he must be hiding somewhere. Thank you for your updates ZaZara on all the threads here you are always an excellent source of information.