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French police arrest 5 people linked to deadly knife attack

October 14, 2019

Officers have detained five people in connection with a knife attack at a French police headquarters earlier this month. Among those held is the imam at the mosque the main perpatrator attended.

https://p.dw.com/p/3RERW
French police on guard after a deadly knife attack
Image: AFP/G. van der Hasselt

French authorities on Monday arrested five people suspected of being associated with a knife attack at Paris police headquarters that left four people dead. The arrests took place following an early morning raid in a Parisian suburb. 

On October 3, computer expert Mickael Harpon stabbed four colleagues at the police headquarters to death before he was shot and killed. 

Investigators are trying to establish whether he was acting alone or if the attack was part of an organized act of terror. 

Harpon converted to Islam 10 years ago and had adopted increasingly radical beliefs. An imam who officiated at a prayer hall he frequented is among those detained. The imam is listed on "Fiche S," France's list of potential security threats. 

kp/rt (AFP, Reuters)

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