A gendarme killed, this Monday, July 31, 2023 in Isbergues (Pas-de-Calais), a man who was threatening. The Béthune public prosecutor’s office opened two investigations and announced at the end of the day on Monday the placement of the gendarme in police custody.
[Mis à jour le 31 juillet 2023 à 18h40] A gendarme killed a man, this Monday, July 31, 2023, at the end of the morning, in the town of Isbergues, in Pas-de-Calais. The tragedy occurred while the victim was threatening to the police, as revealed The voice of the North. On Monday evening, the Béthune public prosecutor’s office announced the opening of two separate investigations “for attempted murder of persons holding public authority and threats to neighbors” and “for intentional violence resulting in death without intention to give it”. The gendarme was taken into custody, the prosecution said.
The man already known for neighborhood disturbances
According to the first elements collected by the local daily La Voix du Nord, the local gendarmerie had been called for a dispute between neighbors, before the situation got out of hand. It would be a “violent brawl” according to News Pas-de-Calais. Two soldiers, aged 25 and 35, were sent to the site to assess the situation. When they arrived, they discovered a 66-year-old man with a katana, a Japanese sword. This resident, who would already be known for neighborhood disturbances, would then have advanced in a threatening manner towards the duo. “The first elements of the investigation suggest that the man immediately threatened the gendarmes with a saber“explained the Béthune prosecution in a press release published Monday evening. “They would have tried to calm him down before using, in vain, the taser, then the defense stick (…) One of the soldiers would then have fired twice”.
Despite the orders to stop, the man did not comply and received a shot from an electric pulse gun (taser type). That wouldn’t have stopped him from continuing his threats. The service weapon of one of the two gendarmes was then used twice: once in the leg, then a second in the abdomen. The voice of the North was later in the day that the older constable would have fired the fatal shot. Despite the intervention of the emergency services, the individual died. Despite the intervention of the emergency services, the individual died. The investigation, opened by the Béthune public prosecutor’s office, will have to determine in particular whether the circumstances of self-defense were met at the time of the shooting.