unknown to the police, weapons holder… who is Paul D., the 22-year-old alleged murderer?

He accuses himself of being the author of the 5 homicides committed between Wormhout and Loon-Plage, this Saturday, December 14, 2024. Paul D., unknown to the police, is in police custody. Several weapons were discovered in his vehicle. In particular, he was allegedly fired from a shooting range. An investigation, entrusted to the Northern judicial police, has been opened.

Born in 2002, the alleged murderer is 22 years old and lives with his parents in Ghyvelde, in Dunkirk. Unknown to the police services and the judicial authority, Paul D. presented himself to the Ghyvelde gendarmerie around 5:20 p.m., Saturday December 14, 2024. Premises located about a hundred meters from his home.

He was immediately taken into custody after accusing himself of being the author of 5 homicides, committed during separate events in the afternoon. This could last up to 96 hours, or until Wednesday December 18, 2024 at the latest, specifies the Dunkirk public prosecutor's office.

The killing began two hours earlier, when Paul Dekeister, a 29-year-old business manager, was coldly shot dead in Wormouth (North) with several bullets, including one in the skull, in front of members of his family. Called to 15h20the firefighters could only note the death of the father of the family.

HAS 16h07Aurélien Cugny and Marc Lehmus were killed near the Canal des Dunes, in Loon-Plage. The two security agents, aged 33 and 37, were carrying out their activity when they were targeted by several gunshots. A few minutes later, 5 kilometers away, near the Loon-Plage migrant camp, two Iranian Kurdish exiles aged 19 and 30 were also killed with a similar process.

Read also ► 5 people killed near Dunkirk: Marc, Aurélien, Paul… who are the victims of the 22-year-old alleged murderer?

While the investigation is still in its early stages and the motive remains unclear, several avenues are being considered. There may have been a professional dispute between the alleged shooter and the companies where the first three victims worked.

According to a police source, the suspect did not know the two migrants killed. “He apparently stopped, got out of his vehicle, got down on the road, took his gun and fired in front of him“, continues this source. A “deadly American journey“which according to him is similar to a”mass killing“.

In the gray Berlingo, a vehicle driven on the afternoon of December 14, 2024 by the suspect and parked in front of the gendarmerie gates at 5:20 p.m., investigators discovered several firearms. According to a representative of the Unité SGP union, “at least 3 weapons, such as long guns such as rifles or shotguns” were seized from the vehicle, as well as Caliber 44-40 Winchester ammunition.

Given the plurality of victims and the plurality of crime scenes, numerous investigations are underway. Their aim is in particular to clarify the reasons which led the accused to commit these crimes, to clarify the sequence of events and to confirm the categorization of the weapons.

Press release from the Dunkirk public prosecutor's office

Weapons that Paul D. would know how to use to perfection, according to this same source. “The suspect is a weapons enthusiast who would have been part of a shooting club in Dunkirk“, he indicates. According to our colleagues from Le Parisien, the alleged murderer would be registered as the holder of a Smith and Wesson caliber 44 Remington rifle, also called “tracker rifle“. As indicated by current legislation, a sports shooter aged at least 21 may be authorized to acquire and possess weapons subject to authorization.

The investigation, entrusted to the organized and specialized crime division of the Northern judicial police, was opened to “murders preceded, accompanied or followed by another crime” et “acquisition, possession, carrying and transport of category A and B weapons“. Acts punishable by life imprisonment.