Two Guyanese nationals have been arrested by French police accused of stabbing a 71-year-old male multiple times and stealing his vehicle, according to local media.
The incident reportedly took place late on Friday evening at a roundabout in Betton, near Rennes in northwest France.
The elderly victim, from Saint-Grégoire, was found unconscious by rescuers and suffering from at least six stab wounds. The victim was immediately transported by emergency services to a nearby hospital and remains in a critical condition.
In a press release, the public prosecutor, Philippe Astruc, specified that the investigations made it possible to quickly arrest two young men on Saturday afternoon at approximately 2:30 p.m. The men were aged 17 and 18 and were both born in Guyana. The men were found in Le Mans, in the Mercedes vehicle stolen from the victim, the fdesouche.com news outlet reported.
“He declares having met the victim by chance on the street in Rennes on the night of July 14 to 15,” the prosecutor said of one of the suspects. “He admits having stabbed the victim, inside and outside the vehicle. He explains his act because of the supposed homosexuality of the victim, but also with a view to stealing [his car], which is why he left with his vehicle,” the prosecutor said.
Nearly by a miracle, the victim is alive. “The forensic certificate mentions the presence of six wounds compatible with the action of a knife and fractures of the facial bone,” the prosecutor stated, adding that doctors expected the victim to remain in intensive care for 30 days.
“A criminal judicial investigation into attempted murder due to the sexual orientation of the victim and robbery with a weapon has been opened,” added the prosecutor, who said he would be requesting pre-trial detention.