Waiter killed when attacker jumped on him from bistro canopy
A FRENCH waiter was killed in the attacks after one of the terrorists jumped on him from a canopy in the restaurant in which he worked.
Alexandre Pigeard, 27, was serving food at Boro Bistro in Borough Market when he was leapt on by the knifewielding killer.
Vincent Le Berre, a barman at the restaurant, said he was just two metres away from his friend when he watched him being stabbed in the neck.
Just two days before the attack, staff had received training in how to cope with a terrorist attack and Mr Le Berre managed to shepherd 40 diners to safety. But the surprise attack from above left workers on the back foot.
Mr Le Berre’s mother, Marie-jo, told the French news site Le Telegramme that her son had contacted her after the attack, and described in his words what had happened. “The bar was full. A terrorist arrived on the roof of the bar and jumped on to the parasol on the terrace, injuring one of my colleagues. He immediately began to attack. One client was killed.
“I found myself face to face with the terrorist, just two metres away from me. I saw the hate in his eyes. I managed to escape him but my friend, Alexandre, didn’t have the chance to. He was stabbed in the neck with a knife.”
Mr Pigeard was from Caen, in Normandy, but had been living in London for more than two years. Mr Pigeard’s father last night described his son’s death as an “incredible injustice,” describing him as a “wonderful son, a perfect big brother,” and a “shining young man”.
A second Frenchman, Sebastien Belanger, 36, is thought to be the fifth victim of the attacks, after his mother and brother flew into London to identify his body, the French press reported.
The chef ’s friends mounted a tireless campaign to find him, contacting the media and touring hospitals with his picture asking if staff had seen him.
His girlfriend Gerda Bennett, 22, said: “He was watching the football match in the Barrowboy and Banker [a pub on Borough High Street] and when the match was finished he and his two friends started to walk to another bar to have another drink and there was a car crash.
“The guys he was with said there were about five to 10 seconds when everyone was shouting and they just started running and that’s when they lost him. One of his friends said one of the guys with the knife was very close by when they started to run.”