Terrifying moment masked gunmen ambush prison van at French tollbooth, shoot dead three guards and free ‘narco boss’ dubbed ‘The Fly’ before going on the run
This is the terrifying moment masked gunmen ambush a prison van at a French toll booth before shooting dead three guards and freeing a ‘narco boss’ called ‘The Fly’ before fleeing on foot.
The prison van was attacked after 11am on the A154 motorway near the Incarville toll booth, located in the town of Val-de-Reuil, Normandy, northern France.
At least three French guards were killed and two others injured after the attack in which the attackers and the detainee, Mohammed Amra, 30, managed to escape.
The prisoner, reportedly nicknamed ‘La Mouche’ (the fly), was transported between the towns of Rouen and Evreux in Normandy before the massacre unfolded.
Amra’s last conviction was for burglary, and he also has a previous conviction for attempted murder.
Three prison guards were shot dead after four gunmen ambushed their vehicle at the Incarville toll booth, located in the town of Val-de-Reuil, Normandy, northern France
In the attack, the attackers and the ‘narco boss’ prisoner, Mohammed Amra, 30, managed to escape from the scene
The prisoner, Mohammed Amra, reportedly nicknamed ‘La Mouche’ (the fly), was transported between the towns of Rouen and Evreux in Normandy before the massacre occurred.
Police officers gather at the site of the deadly attack in Normandy this morning
A police source reports this Le Parisien that he was ‘the head of a narcotics network’ in France and therefore considered enormously dangerous.
The French publication also reported that Mohammed had tried to escape from his cell just two days before Tuesday’s escape.
He was reportedly placed in solitary confinement and his supervision level increased to ‘Escort 3’.
According to BFMTVAmra was sentenced last Tuesday by the Évreux court to 18 months in prison for serious thefts, in particular thefts from supermarkets and businesses in the suburbs of Évreux between August and October 2019.
The suspect is charged with attempted murder in Saint-Étienne du-Rouvray.
He is also reportedly charged in Marseille with intentional murder committed on June 17, 2022 in Aubagne of a resident of Dreux, in a drug trafficking case.
At the time of the attack, he was being transferred from one detention center to another, via a route that was supposed to remain secret.
The inmate and gang members initially escaped in two cars: an Audi A5 and a BMW 5 Series.
According to local reports, the white Audi A5 was found on fire in nearby Vatteville, Eure.
A local police source said: ‘The ambush took place at the toll booth in Incarville on the A154. It is believed that Kalashnikovs were used.
‘Three prison guards are believed dead, and three others seriously injured.
“An inmate known for cases related to drug trafficking escaped with a gang of approximately four men.”
Amra was transported between the towns of Rouen and Evreux in Normandy before the massacre at the Incarville toll booth
A forensic expert works at the scene of a late morning ram attack on a toll road in Incarville in the Eure region of northern France
Emergency services were spotted at the toll booth this morning following the ambush that killed three French officers
A fire truck also arrived on the scene
La Parisien reported that one of the officers who died at the scene of Tuesday morning’s attack was born in 1972, while the other was born in 1989.
One had a wife and two children, Justice Minister Eric Dupond Morretti said, while “the other leaves behind a woman who is five months pregnant.”
Moretti said: “All my thoughts are with the victims, their families and their colleagues.”
Alexandre Rassaërt, chairman of the Eure Departmental Council, which covers Vale-de-Reuil, said: ‘I was frozen with horror when I heard of the real massacre that took place at the Incarville toll booth.
“I sincerely hope that the gang of murderers who carried out this bloody attack are quickly arrested.
“All my thoughts go out to the families of the service officers. prison that supervised the prisoners and who were killed or seriously injured in this attack, which did not give them a chance.
“I also think of all the guards of the prison administration who guard prisoners every day at the risk of their lives.”
French President Emmanuel Macron also spoke out after the horror bus attack.
“This morning’s attack, which claimed the lives of prison administration officers, is a shock to all of us,” he wrote on X.
“The Nation stands with the families, the injured and their colleagues,” Emmanuel Macron continued.
“Every effort is being made to find the perpetrators of this crime so that justice can be done in the name of the French people. We will be persistent.’
After the ambush, the road was closed by the police for an ‘indefinite period’, reports Bison Futé.
Images posted online show emergency services gathering at the toll booth this morning.
A fire truck was also filmed stopping just meters away from the chaotic scene.
The Minister of the Interior, Gérald Darmanin, announced on X that a plan had been launched to locate the refugees.
‘All resources are being used to find these criminals. On my instructions, several hundred police officers and gendarmes are being mobilized,” he said.
Deputy Mayor of the Vendée, Veronique Besse, expressed her ‘shock’ at the incident via X, formerly Twitter.
“I am deeply shocked and saddened by the scene of war against a prison administration convoy in #Incarville, which claimed the lives of several officers,” she wrote.
“Every day, unspeakable acts of barbarism hit our country, much to the indifference of our leaders. “I extend my sincere condolences to the families and loved ones affected.”