French police have launched a manhunt in and around the southern city of Marseille after three people were killed late Sunday, including a bystander, in a shooting believed to be a gang dispute, officials said.
Two people known to the authorities were killed in the shooting in the southern town of Ollioules, west of the French port city of Toulon, police said.
The shootout also claimed the life of a 57-year-old woman, a passenger on a scooter, who was caught in the crossfire. The woman's husband was wounded and taken to hospital. Local media said they were regular visitors to the area.
The two suspected gunmen fled the scene.
"All means will be used to identify and arrest those behind the shooting in Ollioules," said interior minister Christophe Castaner on Twitter, adding that he was confident the police would "eradicate the criminal networks who corrupt our neighbourhoods".
Tous les moyens sont mis en œuvre pour identifier et interpeller les auteurs de la fusillade d’Ollioules.
Christophe Castaner (@CCastaner) July 28, 2019
Pleine confiance en nos policiers dont je sais, au quotidien, la détermination à éradiquer ces réseaux criminels qui gangrènent nos quartiers.
A police source said the profile of the two male victims – aged 29 and 30 and known to police over past drug cases – backed the theory that the shooting was a gangland dispute.
The Var department of southern France has seen a string of gangland-style shootings in recent months.
In March, notorious local crime figure Thierry Fornasari, who had been on the run since 2017, was shot dead in the town of Tanneron. Five days later a man aged 20 was gunned down in the same region.
(with AFP)
