A gendarme from Hérault killed Tuesday evening, with an assault rifle, the new partner of his ex-companion, a professional firefighter, before committing suicide, the Montpellier prosecutor's office said on Wednesday.
According to the prosecutor of the Republic of Montpellier, Fabrice Bélargent, the facts took place Tuesday at the beginning of the evening in the small village of Viols-le-Fort, about twenty kilometers north-west of Montpellier, at the home of the ex-companion of the gendarme, where was his new partner, professional firefighter.
Mourning firefighters
“
The victim was killed by 6 to 7 bullets, probably fired in a burst from a 5.56 caliber assault rifle.
It was a personal weapon of the defendant who was a sports shooter
, “said Fabrice Bélargent to AFP.
The author of the shots then "
turned the weapon against him
" and was found "
killed by a bullet on a sofa
", said the prosecutor.
Fabrice Bélargent also told AFP that the ex-companion of the gendarme was "
not present
" when his current companion was killed.
The Montpellier Gendarmerie Research Section has been seized of the procedure.
"
The family of the Hérault firefighters is in mourning and emotional this morning following the sudden disappearance last night (...) of the professional firefighter at the Departmental Corps of Hérault firefighters
" assigned to Montpellier, reacted in a press release the firefighters of Hérault.
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They provide "
their support to his family, his partner and his colleagues and friends in these tragic and painful circumstances
", they added, stressing that a "
judicial investigation is underway to shed light on the circumstances of this drama
”.