Man who killed 84 in Nice researched Orlando shooting before deadly attack
By Will Stroude
The man responsible for killing 84 people when he drove a truck into crowds celebrating Bastille Day in the French city of Nice last Thursday (July 14) had researched last month’s massacre at a gay nightclub in Orlando prior to the attack.
According to prosecutors, Mohamed Lahouaiyej Bouhlel, 31, had searched the internet for news articles about last month’s deadly shooting at Pulse club, in which 49 people were killed after a gunman pledging his allegiance to Islamic extremist group ISIS opened fire on crowds.
Bouhlel was shot dead by police after driving a 20-tonne lorry into crowds gathered on the Promenade des Anglais, leaving 84 people and another 256 injured – 19 of whom remain in a critical condition.
Searches of Bouhlel’s computer revealed violent images “linked to radical Islam” and indicated that he had a “clear, recent interest” in radicalism, Paris prosecutor Francois Molins told reporters at a news conference this week.
Neighbours and relatives say the killer – who had a history of violence, mental instability, and was known to police – lived a life “far from religion”, drinking alcohol and having sexual relationships with both men and women.
The Associated Press quotes his uncle, Sadok Bouhlel, as saying his nephew came under the influence of an Algerian memeber of ISIS just two weeks ago.
The 69-year-old retired teacher, who lives in the attacker’s hometwon of Tunisia, said extremists “found in Mohamed an easy prey for recruitment.”
“Mohamed didn’t pray, didn’t go to the mosque and ate pork,” he said. “He made more than 80 families grieve, and stained the reputation of our town and our country.”
The New York Daily News reports that French investigators have now arrested seven people in connection with the Nice attack.
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