Investigation into Russian-Ukrainian man after explosion in Paris
Paris: The French anti-terrorism prosecutor’s office has opened an investigation into a Russian-Ukrainian man who was seriously injured when a homemade explosive device detonated.
The 26-year-old is to be remanded in custody, the public prosecutor’s office announced in Paris on Friday.
The exact plans of the man and others who may have been involved are now to be investigated.
According to initial investigations, the man had only arrived in France a few days earlier. In a hotel in Roissy near Paris Charles-de-Gaulle International Airport, he had seriously injured himself while making explosive devices on Monday evening.
According to the newspapers Le Parisien and Le Monde, the Ukrainian, who comes from the eastern Donbass region, is also said to have taken Russian citizenship a few years ago and to have been pro-Russian. He is also said to have fought in the Russian army for two years.
The newspaper JDD had previously reported, citing security sources, that investigators suspected he could be a Russian spy targeting French military equipment destined for Ukraine.
Ahead of this summer’s Olympic Games, France has repeatedly reported cases of possible Russian influence and attempts at destabilization.