Motive sought in stabbing

Authorities detained a fourth person Saturday as terrorism investigators questioned three others, seeking to establish a motive and uncover any possible ties to extremism after a police official was fatally stabbed at a police station outside Paris.

Police killed the Tunisian suspect in the Friday slaying of an unarmed administrative employee at the entrance of her police station in the town of Rambouillet. The suspect’s father is among the four currently held, a judicial official said. A couple who had housed the suspect at one point also were being questioned.

The police station where the 49yearold National Police administrative employee identified only as Stephanie was killed remained blocked off Saturday.

The 37yearold suspect, identified as Djamel G., entered France illegally in 2009 and was given residency papers last year. He had no criminal record, French media reported. But witnesses heard him say “Allahu akbar,” Arabic for “God is great,” during the attack.

Social media posts from accounts thought to have belonged to the attacker hint at a man who waffled over the years about his allegiances but with no overt ties to an extremist ideology, the SITE Intelligence Group reported.

Michel Euler / Associated Press A woman hands flowers to an officer where a police official was fatally stabbed in Rambouillet, France.