MARSEILLE, France: At least one person was killed and another injured in Marseille on Monday when a van crashed into two bus shelters in different parts of the French city, police said, in an incident not being treated as terrorism at this stage.
Police advised the public to avoid the Old Port area where the driver, a 35-year-old man, was arrested.
A source close to the investigation said the suspect was known to police for minor crimes and had psychological issues. France’s counter-terrorism prosecutor said it had not taken up the case at this stage.
“The arrest was made in a surprisingly calm fashion, no gunshots were exchanged,” David Reverdy, of the Alliance police union in Marseille, told BFM TV.
The driver first hit a bus shelter around 8:15 am (06:15 GMT) in the poorer northern part of the city, before ramming into a second one an hour later, several kilometres (miles) to the south.
“The distance travelled by the driver suggests a certain determination,” Reverdy said.
“But we can ask ourselves: why these places- If one wanted to cause carnage, other places in Marseille, at another time of day, would have been more logical,” he said.
— Reuters
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