Police Shoot Dead Knifeman at France’s Largest Airport

A knifeman who threatened officers with his weapon was shot dead at Charles de Gaulle airport Wednesday morning.

Police officers “neutralised a threatening individual in possession of a knife this morning at Roissy Charles de Gaulle airport”, Paris Police said in a statement which praised officers for their cool and calm conduct — their sang-froid — during the incident.

The suspect shot dead by police is a 32-year-old homeless man, France’s Le Figaro reports, who had some sort of disagreement with airport security who called police officers to attend the scene. When the officers arrived the homeless man became aggressive towards them, the report states, a situation with devolved into the man punching a police officer and grabbing a knife.

At that point, the man, who the report did not describe beyond his age and his being “coloured” and from the Caribbean territory of Martinque, was shot once in the abdomen. He later died.

An investigation into the lethal shooting has been launched. There is no indication of a terror motive in this case.

London’s Evening Standard cites an investigation insider who said of the situation: “He was considered a threat… Officers had asked the man to put down his knife, but he continually refused, and then ran towards officers. This is when live fire was used. No officers were injured.”

Police in France are on high alert for potential terror attacks and have been since a series of deadly attacks in the middle of the last decade which saw dozens killed. The response to the attacks has seen heavily armed police and the army permanently deployed to French streets.