Stash of explosives found at suspect's house who dumped fake suicide belt by school
FRENCH counter-terrorism officials discovered a large stash of explosives during a house raid in southern France on Monday.
French counter-terrorism officials have discovered a large stash of explosives
A salesperson raised the alarm after a “suspicious” customer tried to purchase “a large amount” of chemical products from a store in Apt, a town located in southeastern France, near Marseille.
The terror suspect was arrested shortly after and was carrying a backpack stuffed with readily-available chemicals that could be used to make explosives.
The chemicals were immediately destroyed by a bomb disposal team and buried in a public park in central Apt, according to French daily La Provence reports.
Counter-terror officials then proceeded to raid the suspect’s home, where they discovered the stash of explosives.
They discovered the explosives during a house raid in southern France
Apt prosecutor Philippe Guémas confirmed that anti-terror police had found “several kilos of explosives” during the raid, but refused to elaborate further on the matter.
An anonymous police source, however, told La Provence that “more than six kilos of explosives” had been discovered at the suspect’s home.
Counter-terror officials then proceeded to raid the suspect’s home
The man, whose identity has not yet been revealed, was not on the radar of police and was not on the government’s terrorist watch list.
In December, the suspect dumped a fake suicide bomb belt made of modelling clay outside a local school, but told police that it was nothing more than a “bad joke” and was subsequently released without charge.