Paris (AFP)
A premeditated killing perpetrated by a man with the "radical vision of Islam" and in contact with the "Salafist" movement: the national anti-terrorist prosecutor confirmed Saturday the jihadist scenario of the attack of the Paris police headquarters.
Describing almost minute by minute the deadly journey, Jean-François Ricard sketched a portrait of the killer at a press conference.
The attacker, a 45-year-old computer scientist assigned to the technical service of the Intelligence Directorate of the Prefecture of Police (DRPP) since 2003, "reportedly adhered to a radical vision of Islam".
Converted to Islam a "decade ago", Mickael Harpon was in contact "with several individuals likely to belong to the Salafist Islamist movement," said Saturday Jean-François Ricard, prosecutor at the national anti-terrorism prosecutor ( NTP).
The first investigations revealed his "approval of certain abuses committed in the name of this religion", "his wish not to have certain contacts with women", "his justification" of the attacks of Charlie Hebdo in 2015, "his change of habit of dress for a few months, "added the prosecutor, before detailing the murderous journey of" seven minutes "of" unprecedented violence "of the author, deaf.
This man with a clean criminal record but who had been the subject of a domestic violence procedure in 2009, was abandoning "any Western attire in favor of a traditional dress to go to the mosque", he said. Explain.
Moreover, the study of the telephony also accredits the track of the preparation of a violent act. It would include the exchange of "33 SMS" the morning of the tragedy with his wife, whose custody was extended Saturday for 48 hours.
"During this conversation, the author of the facts made remarks with exclusively religious connotation that ended with these two expressions: + Allah akbar + then + am our beloved prophet, Muhammad, and meditate the Qur'an," recounted the prosecutor.
According to witnesses in his entourage, he said "similar comments at night," he said.
- "Malfunctions" -
On the morning of the attack, the attacker bought two knives, a 33 cm "metal kitchen knife", and an "oyster knife", which he hid on top of him. It was with the help of these knives that he wounded mortally, between 12:53 and 13:00, two policemen and an administrative agent of his service.
He then killed a policewoman and injured a human resources employee and another official, before being shot dead by a trainee police officer in the prefecture court, located in the historic heart of the capital.
After 24 hours of investigation, the PNAT seized Friday the investigation, under the qualifications of "assassination and attempted assassination on person in charge of the public authority in relation to a terrorist enterprise", as well as for "criminal terrorist criminal conspiracy".
Since then, the right and extreme right point to the government and demand the establishment of a commission of inquiry to the Assembly to "shed light" on "dysfunctions".
"The case is very serious". It must be taken "very seriously because it engages the security, the effectiveness of our intelligence services," told AFP boss Patrons Republicans Christian Jacob.
Several LR deputies also called for the resignation of Interior Minister Christophe Castaner, whom Mr Ciotti deemed "discredited to continue his mission".
This tragedy also represents a new storm to face for the powerful police prefecture, which for months has faced powerful headwinds: the Benalla affair, the crisis of "yellow vests" and criticisms on the management of law enforcement in the capital .
"It is difficult to explain that it has gone under the radars of the DRPP", a service which one of the missions is precisely the fight against terrorism, says a police source that predicts "an earthquake" to come.
"This tragedy is all the more terrible (...) that it was carried by one of us", acknowledged the prefect Didier Lallement, who tried to prevent any controversy over the control procedures to the PP. According to him, the security conditions inside the prefecture "are absolute" and "are not in question".
© 2019 AFP