PARIS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 01st November, 2020) A suspect has been arrested as part of an investigation into the attack on a Greek Orthodox priest in the French city of Lyon, the city's public prosecutor, Nicolas Jacquet, has announced.
"A person who could correspond to the description given by the initial witnesses has been placed in police custody," Jacquet said, as quoted by France 24 on Saturday, adding that the suspect was not carrying a weapon when he was arrested.
Earlier on Saturday, LyonMag reported that a suspect was detained in the third district of Lyon.
On Saturday, an attacker armed with a hunting rifle with a sawed-off barrel wounded a Greek Orthodox priest in Lyon, and then fled the scene of the shooting.
The priest, identified as 52-year-old Nikolaos Kakavelaki, was shot in the 7th district of Lyon near a Greek church on Saturday afternoon. He is now in serious condition at the hospital, according to France 24.
Lyon Mayor Gregory Doucet told reporters on Saturday that the motives behind the attack remained unknown. Lyon public prosecutor's office said it had opened an investigation for attempted murder.
The shooting occurred as France is experiencing national dismay in the wake of an increasing Islamic threat following the brutal murder of French history teacher Samuel Paty by a radicalized teenager in mid-October.
