The patient in the morning turned into an aggressor in the afternoon. Friday, December 13, a doctor from Roquevaire left his office around 2 p.m., got behind the wheel of his car and… found himself threatened by a man armed with a knife installed in the back seat of the vehicle.
Does the individual have a personal grudge against their victim? Or does he want to take her bank card? Money? We don’t know, since he only demands to be taken to Aubagne.
Under threat, the doctor takes the road but reacts quickly, deliberately causing an accident by hitting a pole at the Roquevaire town hall. The attacker, who according to a relative of the victim is a new patient at the office, is disoriented by the shock, but not enough to give up. An altercation ensues, during which the doctor kicks the attacker away. Who then fled on foot into the city center.
Informed, the gendarmerie then launched a search operation, and began with a search of the suspect’s home, located nearby, but which yielded nothing.
The attacker arrested the next day in the middle of the night
You must therefore look further afield, particularly in the neighboring woods. Hence the use, with the support of the Departmental Fire and Rescue Service (Sdis13), of a drone equipped with thermal sensors, and the use of telephone geolocation techniques. An operation which lasted part of the night since the suspect was arrested without incident on Saturday December 14 at 4:40 a.m., near his partner’s home.
Placed in police custody, the 40-year-old man accused would not give an explanation of the facts. Referred for immediate appearance on Monday December 16, the trial was adjourned until February 10, 2025, in particular time to carry out a psychiatric assessment. Until then, the suspect is incarcerated at the Baumettes remand center in Marseille.
