Police arrest suspect after man stabs 3 women in Paris metro

Police officers patrol the Trocadero plaza near the Eiffel Tower in Paris, Tuesday, Oct. 17, 2023. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

French police on Friday arrested a man suspected of stabbing three women in the Paris metro as the capital’s end-of-year festivities were in full swing, prosecutors told AFP.

The three victims were attacked at three different locations along the Line 3 metro track that runs across central Paris, the RATP authority that runs the transit service told AFP.

An AFP journalist at the Republique station saw a security team treating a woman who had been wounded in the leg and appeared to be in a state of shock.

The attacks happened between 4:15 pm (1515 GMT) and 4:45 pm at the stations Republique and Arts et Metiers -- both next to the Marais district -- and the Opera station, the RATP said.

“The victims were quickly taken care of by the emergency services,” it said.

Paris police said two of the women attacked were treated by the emergency services and taken to hospital, but they were not in critical condition. A third woman turned up at hospital seeking treatment, they added.

Police used surveillance-camera footage and mobile-tracking tools to locate the 25-year-old suspected attacker in the Val d’Oise region north of Paris, said prosecutors.

“Activating the geolocation of his mobile phone led to his arrest late afternoon in Val d’Oise,” they said.

“The police are on site. Back-up security teams have been deployed to reinforce safety on the line,” it added.

Transport police have opened an investigation into attempted homicide and assault with a weapon.

The French Ministry of Interior said in a statement that man was a Malian citizen who had been imprisoned in January 2024 for aggravated theft and sexual assault convictions and had been required to leave France after being released in July.

The man had been placed in an administrative detention centre but failure to obtain a consular travel document required for his deportation had meant he was released after 90 days, as required by law, the statement said.

Interior Minister Laurent Nunez “regrets that the deportation of the suspect could not be carried out” and assured that “efforts are continuing to prioritize the deportation of undocumented foreigners who have committed public order offences”, according to the ministry statement.

‘Maximum vigilance’

Paris police chief Patrice Faure paid tribute to “the reactivity and the mobilization” of the investigators that led to the arrest of the suspect. Police arrested him at 6:55 pm, less than three hours after the first attack, he said.

Nunez congratulated the different police services involved in tracking down the suspect.

European capitals are especially vigilant during the end-of-year period for any violent incidents, given recent attacks and plots targeting festive or religious gatherings.

Last week, Nunez called for “maximum vigilance” in a message to senior officials.

Due to the “very high level of the terrorist threat” and “the risk of public disorder”, Nunez asked local officials to strengthen security measures across the country with a visible and deterrent presence.

Nunez specifically asked for particular attention to be paid to security on public transport.