A man suspected of being one of the authors of a rodeo inside a shopping center in the Nantes metropolis and whose video had been widely relayed and commented, was arrested and imprisoned, announced the prosecutor's office of Nantes Sunday.
The alleged perpetrator, a 20-year-old man, already known to the police, "acknowledged the facts during his custody" Thursday, said Renaud Gaudeul, prosecutor of the Republic of Nantes, in a statement. "He has been placed in pre-trial detention pending his trial according to the procedure of immediate appearance" to be held on Tuesday, said the magistrate.
Three two-wheelers on an escalator
On April 21, the authors of this rodeo had filmed themselves in a shopping center of Orvault (Loire-Atlantique) and had posted on the social network TikTok the video then broadcast by BFMTV.
The police of #Nantes are investigating to find these thugs who made an urban #rodeo Friday endangering the lives of customers of a shopping center in #Orvault Grand Val. pic.twitter.com/L6PglWkipf
— Police Officers and Commissioners (@PoliceSCSI) April 23, 2023
In particular, we see three two-wheelers borrowing an escalator from the Leclerc Grand Val shopping center. They then circulate in the shopping mall, razing the shop windows in the middle of customers, before quickly leaving the premises by another exit.
This rodeo caused "a legitimate stir among merchants and users," said Renaud Gaudeul. An investigation was opened in the wake by the prosecutor's office. "Investigations are continuing" to find the other participants.
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During the month of April, two people were injured in Nantes "by two-wheeled riders engaged in urban rodeos" and 142 operations to combat rodeos have taken place since the beginning of the year (399 operations in 2022), detailed the magistrate.