French police say killed man holding knives in Paris region

Police stand guard at the Tribunal de Paris courthouse in Paris, on February 25, 2025. (AFP)

• The Mulhouse attack suspect is undocumented and had been required to leave French territory
• The man “threw himself at them, without saying a word,” police said

PARIS: French police said officers shot dead a man holding a knife in each hand after he “threw himself” at them in the northeastern Paris suburbs on Wednesday.
The incident happened after a 37-year-old Algerian-born man was arrested accused of carrying out a stabbing rampage in the eastern city of Mulhouse on Saturday, killing a Portuguese man and wounding seven traffic and police officers.
The Mulhouse attack suspect is undocumented and had been required to leave French territory.
At around 7:00 am (0600 GMT) on Wednesday, police approached “a man sitting at a bus stop with a knife in each hand” in the town of Dugny, Paris police told AFP.
The man “threw himself at them, without saying a word,” they said.
While prosecutors said they had not yet identified the man, a local official said he was clearly homeless.
“He was a homeless person, he had all his bags with him, and was wearing multiple layers of clothing,” said Thierry Pichot-Maufroy, deputy mayor of Dugny.
One of the officers used an “electroshock weapon” without effect, police said.
Another officer then “used their weapon,” wounding the man in the chest.
“CPR was administered until the firemen arrived. Despite the care provided, the man died,” the police said.
Local police and the inspectorate responsible for investigating police misconduct, called the IGPN, have both opened a probe.
In 2023, 36 people died as a result of police action, the IGPN says.