A 26-year-old man forced his way into the Basilica of Notre-Dame in Nice (Alpes-Maritimes) on Monday evening, threatened the sexton, spat on the floor and shouted words in Arabic. The accused, who is staying illegally in France, was arrested by the police shortly afterwards.
The peace in the Basilica of Notre-Dame in Nice was disturbed by a man at around 6pm on Monday evening. The man entered the building and began shouting in Arabic language, according to an authority familiar with the investigation. He spat on the floor and then disappeared for good. The man returned about ten minutes later. This time he threatened.
“The sexton, who had been informed about the previous intruder, confronted the suspect when he started shouting in Arabic and spitting on the ground. The man was very threatening and it was decided to press the emergency button,” the same source said. The police were alerted immediately. When the suspect realised that the police had been called, he decided to flee. At this point, he allegedly threatened the sexton again with gestures. The sexton decided to follow the suspect down the street while holding the police on his mobile phone.
The man was arrested by police on Avenue Jean-Médecin, not far from the basilica. He did not object to his arrest and was remanded in custody. The 26-year-old Tunisian national, who was staying illegally on French territory, had indeed consumed alcohol. He was previously unknown to the police. The sexton decided to lodge a complaint and an investigation was opened. […]
Almost a year ago, on October 29, 2020, three people were killed in an attack in the Basilica of Nice. The attacker was shot and subsequently arrested by the police.Actu17