UAn investigation for “voluntary homicide” was opened after the death of a 47-year-old woman, who was stabbed to death in the middle of the street early Sunday morning as she was leaving for work, announced the public prosecutor of Nantes .
The suspect fled, according to witnesses who attended the attack, which occurred for an as yet undetermined reason, said prosecutor Renaud Gaudeul during a press briefing.
According to the magistrate, the victim is a cleaning lady in a health establishment. “She had just left her home in the immediate vicinity of the scene of the attack and was on her way to work,” he explained.
The victim’s body has “nearly a dozen sharp wounds on the upper body”, added the prosecutor.
The three young men who witnessed the attack had informed the firefighters around 6:30 a.m. They had been “alert by the cries of the victim who called for help”, according to the magistrate.
“When the firefighters arrived, the victim collapsed at their feet and the emergency services who arrived on the spot could not do anything to revive him,” added Mr. Gaudeul.
Mother of four adult children, the victim lived alone with two of her children, added the magistrate. Of French nationality, she was “probably veiled” and had been living apart for several years.
“An investigation has been opened for intentional homicide”, indicated Mr. Gaudel, adding that there is “no arrest at this stage”.
The judicial police have been seized of the investigation. An autopsy is scheduled for Monday morning.
The facts occurred in the lower Bellevue district, a priority district of Nantes, where “this attack aroused great emotion on the spot, because several members of his family live in the immediate vicinity of the facts”, added the prosecutor.
“The whole question is whether the victim and the suspect knew each other”, added Mr. Gaudeul, specifying “that no hypothesis is favored at this stage”.
The mayor of Nantes, Johanna Rolland (PS), indicated on Twitter that she was “in constant contact with the @Prefet44 and the Public Prosecutor”. “Everything is being done to find the author of this appalling crime,” assured Ms. Rolland, addressing “all (her) support to the family and loved ones of the victim”.
The homicide occurred three weeks after the September 24 rape of a 40-year-old woman in downtown Nantes, sparking a debate over the city’s security.
These last facts had occurred on a Saturday shortly before 6 a.m. on the island of Nantes, near the yellow crane. The victim said she was going to a friend’s house when she was assaulted.
In this case, two men of Sudanese nationality were implicated and imprisoned.
10/16/2022 18:25:36 – Nantes (AFP) – © 2022 AFP