Terrorist attack in the Yvelines: the arrest of the shooter is lifted for psychiatric reasons

Hundreds of mourners gathered in Aubervilliers on Sunday afternoon for a white march honoring Pengo Bossio Wangi, a 26-year-old mixed martial artist killed in a racially motivated shooting spree in Trappes earlier this week. The victim was training at the Atch Academy in the northern suburb of Paris when he was fatally shot during an attack that left five others injured. Family members, friends, local politicians, and hundreds of anonymous residents joined the procession through the streets of the Seine-Saint-Denis department. The community expressed both grief and anger over the death of a young man described by peers as respectful and ambitious. The shooting occurred on Friday around 10:00 a.m. in Trappes, located in the Yvelines department, before continuing into the neighboring town of La Verrière. Police said the suspect, identified as Kevin T., aged 39, fired multiple rounds from his vehicle while driving through residential areas. He killed one French citizen of African descent and wounded five other individuals. Authorities arrested the suspect calmly following the incident. A search of his apartment in Plaisir revealed that he had rigged the space with gas bottles and electrical wires connected to a timer. Investigators also found a copy of Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf, alongside a Bible and a Quran, inside the residence. In his Renault Clio, officers recovered a World War II-era Sten submachine gun and a tear gas canister. Pengo Bossio Wangi was an amateur fighter with a record of three wins and four losses, according to sports daily L’Equipe. He traveled approximately one hour and twenty minutes each way from Yvelines to Seine-Saint-Denis twice weekly to train at the Atch Academy. The gym’s founder, Stephane Chaufourier, known professionally as Atch, stated that Wangi possessed significant potential and was on a trajectory toward a professional career. Chaufourier noted that such dedication to the sport is rare. Salahdine Parnasse, a former student of the academy who now fights in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, paid tribute to Wangi on social media, stating that the deceased would not be forgotten. An employee of the club, who is also of Congolese origin, described Wangi as a kind and very respectful person with clear goals and dreams. On Saturday evening, a minute of silence was observed in Aubervilliers at the Embarcadere venue during the Centurion tournament, which is cited as the largest amateur MMA competition in France. On Sunday, Sofienne Karroumi, the mayor of Aubervilliers, addressed the crowd during the white march. She expressed shock at the tragedy, describing the broken dream of success in MMA as shattered by the cowardice of terrorism. Karroumi stated that Wangi’s only fault was being in the wrong place at the wrong time with the wrong skin color. Further demonstrations supporting the victims are scheduled for Monday in several cities across France. The National Anti-Terrorism Prosecutor’s Office, or Pnat, announced on Sunday that the custody of the shooter had been lifted for psychiatric reasons. Following a psychiatric examination conducted late Saturday night, authorities transferred Kevin T. to the psychiatric infirmary at the Prefecture of Police in Paris. He will undergo an observation period that could last up to 48 hours. This assessment aims to determine whether his mental health condition permits him to continue cooperating with interrogations. The prosecutor’s office confirmed that toxicology tests detected cannabis and cocaine in the suspect’s blood. While the shooter’s detention was suspended, the custody of four members of his family and friend circle continues. Among those held are his mother and father. The investigation has been opened for murder in connection with a terrorist enterprise, with an aggravating circumstance related to the victim’s perceived race, ethnicity, nation, or religion. Charges also include membership in a terrorist criminal organization. The anti-terrorist subdivision of the police, supported by the General Directorate for Internal Security, leads the inquiry. The goal is to clarify the suspect’s motivations and ideological influences. Yassine Bouzrou, the lawyer representing Wangi’s family, questioned why the suspect was not subject to preventive monitoring despite prior contact with police and judicial services. Bouzrou indicated that the suspect was reportedly in possession of war weapons. The family has requested that authorities precisely determine how the individual escaped preventive reporting. They have asked for access to all documents regarding any surveillance or lack thereof and reserve the right to pursue administrative liability for established failures. Bouzrou characterized the act as a racist attack by a far-right terrorist. The family demands that the investigation exhaustively map the suspect’s path of radicalization and identify the ideological sources to which he was exposed. The attorney highlighted that racist theories, including the concept of great replacement, and stigmatizing rhetoric based on origin or religion have been widely disseminated in certain media and political spaces, including during the current electoral campaign.