Hero terror cop weds girlfriend on his deathbed

THE he hero French police officer gunned d down by an Islamic State terrorist married his lover just before h his tragic death.

In an e emotional ceremony yesterday Lt Col Arnaud Beltrame, 44, and Marielle Vandenbunder tied the knot at hospital in Carcassonne, south-west France.

A Catholic priest named only as Father Jean- Baptiste told how he wed the couple just before reading out the last rites.

“I gave him the sacrament of marriage, and the sacrament of the sick,’ he said, adding that Arnaud had “found his faith”.

The bride was in floods of tears as they said prayers. Arnaud had suffered terrible head wounds after being shot four times by killer Redouane Lakdim, 26.

Surgeons worked through the night to save him, but his death was announced early yesterday morning. Just 24 hours before, in an act of extreme bravery, he helped end Lakdim’s rampage at a supermarket by swapping places with a terrified female hostage who was being used by the FrenchMoroccan as a human shield.

The gunman was eventually shot dead by police after killing three others.

French Interior Minister Gerard Collomb said Arnaud “fell as a national hero” after heading into the Super U store in Trembes.

French President Emmanuel Macron said: “He saved lives and honoured his colleagues and his country.”

In the UK, Prime Minister Theresa May added: “His sacrifice and courage will never be forgotten.”

Arnuad and Marielle had previously celebrated their love with a civil marriage service. They had been planning a full church wedding in June after meeting in 2016 during an abbey tour.