Suspect in murder of man killed in French mosque repatriated to France
The suspect in the case of a young man who was murdered inside a mosque in the south of France has been repatriated from Italy on Friday.
The suspect — referred to by French media as Olivier A. — is a French national who was born in 2004.
He was transferred from Florence to a courthouse in the southern French city of Nîmes, according to media reports.
Upon his arrival, he is expected to go before the magistrate leading the investigation to present his version of events.
He reportedly faces a possible indictment for "murder aggravated by premeditation and the circumstance of commission because of race or religion" and "evading search or arrest."
Before handing himself in to Italian authorities — for the murder of a 22-year old Malian man named Aboubakar Cissé — the suspect spent three days on the run.
Cissé was attacked and stabbed dozens of times while praying at a mosque in the former mining town of La Grand-Combe in the south of France.
Olivier A. — who lived in the area and who is not reported to have a criminal record — filmed the murder, which he then posted on Snapchat.
Cissé's murder sparked a fiery debate in France in recent weeks, as government officials faced criticism for not initially treating the incident as a hate crime or showing the degree of concern they had in other fatal attacks.
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