French politician arrested for 'celebrating death of Trebes hero police officer'
Stephane Poussier is held after tweeting "that's great!" in the aftermath of the shooting of Arnaud Beltrame in a siege last week.
Monday 26 March 2018 12:01, UK
A French former parliamentary candidate has been arrested for apparently celebrating the death of a "hero" police officer on Twitter.
Left-winger Stéphane Poussier was arrested at his home yesterday after two tweets from his account allegedly welcomed the death of Lieutenant-Colonel Arnaud Beltrame.
The officer was killed by a jihadist gunman after he took the place of a hostage during a seige at a supermarket in the southwestern French town of Trebes on Friday.
Mr Poussier, who stands accused of justifying acts of terrorism, is said to have written on Twitter: "Whenever a policeman is shot, I think of my friend Remi Fraisse."
The statement refers to an environmental activist who was killed by a stun grenade fired by police during a 2014 protest over a dam.
A follow-up tweet wrote: "And this time it was a colonel, that's great! Incidentally, it means more Macron voter."
An earlier tweet also referred to Mr Fraisse, with Poussier tweeting that the dead activist had told him in a dream "He was delighted to welcome a colonel of gendarmerie!"
Lt Col Beltrame was shot and stabbed to death after offering himself in exchange for a woman being used as a human shield by jihadi gunman Redouane Lakdim, who had already killed three other people.
A national tribute is to be held for Mr Beltrame, 44, who President Emmanuel Macron said had "died a hero".
Mr Poussier's remarks provoked strong reactions and his Twitter account was disabled.
Local prosecutor David Pamart said last night: "Stephane Poussier is in custody since 11:30 this morning for justifying acts of terrorism after comments published yesterday on his Twitter account."
The politician, who was arrested at his home in Dives-sur-Mer, northwest France, could face up to seven years in prison and a fine of €100,000 (£87,308).
He stood unsuccessfully in elections last year as a candidate for the La France Insoumise (France Unbowed) party, founded by radical left-winger Jean-Luc Melenchon.
His comments were condemned by the party and Mr Melenchon, who said on Twitter that he would file a complaint against him for justifying terrorism.
Lakdim, 25, shot two occupants of a car in Carcassonne, hijacked the vehicle and opened fire on police officers before storming a supermarket in Trebes and taking several people hostage.
During a standoff with police he demanded the release of Paris attacker Salah Abdeslam.
Mr Beltrame was shot by Lakdim after agreeing to swap places with the last remaining hostage. Lakdim was himself later shot dead.
The French police officer fought for his life in hospital before he died.