One dead after stolen vehicle rams bus stops
A WOMAN was killed and another seriously injured yesterday when a van was deliberately driven into two bus stops in Marseille.
The vehicle was first driven into a packed bus shelter in the CroixRouge (Red Cross) area of the city in southern France just after 8am.
It then sped off as ambulances were called to help the injured. An hour later, the same van drove into a stop in La Valentine.
A unidentified woman in her 40s, who was waiting for a bus, was killed.
Amid heightened tensions after terrorist attacks in Spain and elsewhere, a security operation was launched in the city’s Old Port area, where police quickly arrested the driver of the vehicle.
A Marseille prosecutor’s source said the man – a 35-year-old French national – had “serious psychological problems” and was a “manic depressive”.
The focus of the criminal investigation was “currently the man’s psychological state and not terrorism”, the source said.
The van used in yesterday’s attacks was stolen in Marseille earlier in the morning. The arrested man had previous convictions for theft, drugs trafficking and carrying illegal weapons, officials said.
A police source said: “He first attacked a bus stop in the Red Cross area, and then headed towards a shopping centre in La Valentine.
“He targeted another bus stop in front of a fast-food restaurant. There were a lot of people on their way to work. The attack lasted less than 15 seconds, but was very deliberate.
“The van mounted the pavement and rammed into pedestrians.
“The van was immobilised by police in the Old Port. The man tried to get away but then gave himself up calmly.
“Bomb disposal experts arrived at the scene to search the vehicle, but no explosives or arms were found.”