Mosque Murder Perpetrator Captures Partial Attack on Cell Phone (at Grand-Combe)

Rewritten Article:

In the small French town of La Grand-Combe (Gard), a brutal attack took place at the local mosque on a Friday morning. The assailant, yet to be identified, was reportedly partially documented filming the act with his mobile phone, according to the French News Agency (AFP), as per information received from the prosecutor's office on Saturday, April 26. The motive behind this heinous act remains a mystery.

The incident occurred around 8:30 am within the mosque of this commune, home to some 5,000 residents north of Alès. As of the morning of Saturday, the suspect was still at large, confirmed to AFP by prosecutor Abdelkrim Grini of Alès.

Whilst filming his victim, the attacker is heard hurling insults at God, using the Arabic name Allah. Interestingly, he seems to realize he's also being recorded by the mosque's surveillance cameras, to which he reacts by saying, "I'm going to be arrested, it's certain." AFP confirmed that the suspect did indeed utter these words, and Grini clarified that all possible lines of inquiry are still under consideration, including the possibility of a racist and Islamophobic crime. The National Anti-Terrorist Prosecutor's Office (PNAT) is evaluating this case, considering whether to take it over.

By Saturday evening, the investigation, which involves the gendarmerie group of the Gard, the research section of Nîmes, and the judicial police, was being supervised by the Alès prosecutor's office, according to Grini. The magistrate emphasized the urgency of apprehending the suspect as swiftly as possible, given his potential dangerousness: in his disheveled statements on his recorded video, the assailant hinted at his intent to commit such an act again.

The presumed perpetrator, identified as Olivier H., is a French national in his twenties, of Bosnian origin, and not Muslim. Whilst investigators are unaware of his residence, they know that part of his family resides in the Gard. His younger brother, a minor, was arrested in the Gard and detained for several hours before being released without charge on Saturday evening. Grini emphasized the gravity of the situation earlier in the day.

The victim, a 23 or 24-year-old man who volunteered every week to clean the mosque before Friday prayer, was the sole individual present during the attack. The suspect, it's important to note, was not a regular mosque attendee and had never been seen inside before. On the surveillance camera footage, one can see the two speaking, followed by a move towards the prayer room.

Preliminary autopsy reports suggest the victim sustained between 40 to 50 stab wounds, and his body was discovered around 11:00 to 11:30, when other worshippers arrived for the Friday prayer. As the news of the horror unfolded, prominent French figures such as Justice Minister Gerald Darmanin, and politicians like Jean-Luc Mélenchon and François Bayrou, expressed their condolences and outrage.

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Source: AFP

The attacker recorded the assault at the mosque in La Grand-Combe using his mobile phone, according to the French News Agency (AFP).
In the surveillance footage, the suspect was seen speaking with the victim before moving towards the prayer room.
The suspect, Olivier H., a French national of Bosnian origin, is not Muslim and was not a regular mosque attendee.
The suspect's potential dangerousness was emphasized by the Alès prosecutor, Abdelkrim Grini, given the assailant's stated intent to commit another such act.