Strasbourg: Christmas market attacker 'shot dead'

[Eugene]

Source: BBC

10 minutes ago

French police have shot dead the man believed to have attacked Strasbourg's Christmas market, police sources have told reporters.

Cherif Chekatt had been on the run since the attack on Tuesday evening.

Three people have died following the shooting at the popular attraction and several more were seriously injured.

France Info reported that Chekatt was killed by police after he was found hiding in a warehouse in the Meinau area of the city.

-snip-


Read more: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-46561574

[oberliner]

1. French police say the gunman is one of 12,000 'gangster-jihadists' who exist under the radar

French investigators call them the “gangster-jihadists” – young men, often from poor immigrant backgrounds, who start with petty crime, drug dealing and robbery and graduate to terrorism.

They exist under the radar of the intelligence services or are placed on watch lists for their radical religious beliefs and subjected to varying degrees of surveillance – but are not expected to become violent.

In any case, French security forces have said it would be impossible to keep an eye on all 12,000 listed for suspected Islamist views or even the 4,000 considered “problematic”.

The profile of Chérif Chekatt, who is being hunted by police in connection for the attacks in Strasbourg, is all too familiar in France.

Chekatt was born in Strasbourg in February 1989, into a family with Moroccan roots, and appears to have fallen first into petty crime then gangster circles. The final stage, his apparent move into Islamic extremism, was reportedly sparked – or at least strengthened – during a spell in prison between 2013 and 2015.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/dec/12/cherif-chekkat-who-is-the-strasbourg-shooting-suspect

[LittleGirl]

2. He was radicalized

in prison and some of that prison time was in Basel (where I live).

one less terrorist on the planet. good work police.

RIP to the victims and those that have critical injuries have my thoughts.

[Ligyron]

3. Saves them the trouble of a long trial with only a prison sentence as the result.

Who cares that they don't get to question him and learn anything useful?

Or wait, did I read that France had brought back the guillotine? Say, that's what they could use here vs the lethal injection method. Which they always manage to botch.

Which is so[ embarrassing. Americans are suppose to be good at killing people.

Better add just in case.

[christx30]

4. If someone wants access to the justice system

and get their day in court, they have to surrender. If they want to keep fighting and hurting people, the police are under no obligation to allow that to happen.
I'd hate for my loved one to get shot when the police could have done something, and they say, "well, we wanted to make sure to arrest him and try him in a court of law. That's the best way to get justice."

[TwistOneUp]

6. Well, if all we can give him is a prrison sentence...

Then force him to listen to Falwell all day. That'll drive him insane, if he's not already there...

[MarcA]

5. 27 Convictions for Theft and Violent Crimes by Age 29

Why was he even let free in society? Life in prison or
in a prisoner commune would have been preferable.

[Aristus]

7. "France Kills Terrorist Without Invading Unrelated Countries".

The US could learn a thing or two from this...