Abdallah Ahmed-Osman, the man who was arrested after the knife attack that killed two people on Saturday in Romans-sur-Isère, is a Sudanese refugee, born January 1, 1987 in Tendelti. This Sudanese man entered France in August 2016, obtained refugee status at the end of June 2017 and the month following a ten-year residence permit from the Drôme prefecture.
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Ahmed-Osman first lived in Moras-en-Valloire, in the north of the department, "accompanied by state services and Catholic Relief," according to a press release from the mayor of the town, Aurélien Ferlay. "Nothing, absolutely nothing, foreshadowed (his) foul act" . One of his neighbors at the time, Bruno, told AFP that he was "someone very discreet, shy, smiling, friendly".
He would have settled in late 2019 in the center of Romans-sur-Isère in accommodation a few meters from the scene of the attack. In early 2020, he obtained a professional leather goods certificate, and worked in a company specializing in the sector. “He was a very discreet young man, appreciated by all, hardworking. We didn't see anything coming, it's terrible! ” said a member of the management to the regional daily Le Dauphiné Libéré .
The attacker from Romans-sur-Isère "has not been feeling well for several days" and was "quite embittered" because of the confinement, according to the statements of several witnesses reported to AFP by a source close to the investigation.
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Abdallah Ahmed-Osman is unknown to the French or European police or intelligence services and had "a priori no medical history" , according to the national anti-terrorist prosecutor's office (PNAT). "To our knowledge, he would have acted alone," Secretary of State for the Interior Laurent Nuñez said on France Inter on Sunday.
During a search of his home, investigators found six phones and a USB drive.
Two other Sudanese were taken into police custody on Saturday. The first, "a friend", aged 28, is also a refugee and was quickly arrested at the home of Abdallah Ahmed-Osman. He is "unknown to all services," according to a source close to the investigation. "He said he came to see his boyfriend because he was not well," said a witness.
During the search of this second man's home in Valencia, the police arrested a third man, an asylum seeker since March 2.
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The first elements of the investigation into Abdallah Ahmed-Osman showed a desire to "seriously disturb public order by intimidation or terror" , according to the PNAT.
Similarly, during a search of his home, were found "handwritten documents with religious overtones in which the author of the lines complains in particular of living in a country of disbelievers", "a priori" written by him.
However, no reference to the jihadist group Islamic State or another terrorist organization was found "at this stage, but the exploitation has barely begun" , underline two sources close to the investigation. "He never presented any sign of radicalization" declared his employer to the Dauphiné Libéré .
According to a source familiar with the investigation, the 33-year-old man told investigators "to not remember what happened" . A psychiatric assessment, scheduled for Sunday, has been postponed.