A man wanted for rape died Wednesday in Mayotte while four police officers tried to arrest him during a traffic check, announced the public prosecutor of the island in the Indian Ocean.
According to the first elements of the investigation, the man, suspected of several rapes, some of which were minors, was traveling with three other people in a vehicle which was intercepted by four police officers in the town of Tsararano, in the center of the city. island, said the magistrate, Yann Le Bris, in a press release.
As soon as the vehicle immobilized, the suspect stabbed himself several times in the stomach, injuring himself very seriously, reported the prosecutor.
When officials attempted to disarm him, the man turned his gun on them, wounding one of them in the arm.
"One of the police officers then used his service weapon and touched the respondent, who died a few minutes later, despite the rapid intervention of the emergency services"
, detailed the prosecutor.
An investigation has been opened to determine the causes of the death of the individual,
"the stab wounds may be the cause",
added Yann Le Bris, specifying that his autopsy would take place on Saturday.
The four police officers were heard on Wednesday, according to the magistrate.