Prosecutors say alleged perpetrator was ‘wild, isolated and antisocial’

57-year-old man kills 3 people and injures 4 with a shotgun Saturday evening in Epinasse-Vozelle near VichyThe Cusset prosecutor’s office (Allier) announced on Monday that he was a former Air Force technician and not a “sniper.”

“He has never served in a combat unit, he is neither a commando nor a sniper,” Cusset prosecutor Eric Nevi declared at a press conference.

The man, who was from the Vichy region, “served at three Air Force bases between 1991 and his retirement in 2003,” he said.

The mayor of Espinasse-Vauzel spoke on Sunday of the gunman’s involvement in “serious conflicts such as Afghanistan.”

The man owned multiple firearms, including rifles, including a shotgun that he used to shoot attendees at a 20th birthday party for a neighbor before committing suicide.

He killed the 20-year-old, his father and godfather, and wounded four other people who remained hospitalized Monday with non-life-threatening injuries.

“Fourteen shell casings, most of which contained lead bullets, were found at various locations during the shooting,” Eric Neve detailed.

Not knowing how to uphold justice

Prosecutors said the gunman “had returned to his locksmith trade and was described by neighbours as wild, isolated and antisocial” and “had no complaints against him and was not known to the police, judicial or intelligence services”.

According to preliminary testimony, four young men, including one who was celebrating his birthday, went to the home of the 50-year-old man and explained to the family that they wanted to “help a woman who appeared to be in danger” inside the house. They were followed by two fathers.

The former soldier then came out and fired multiple times.

A search of his home “revealed a large video surveillance system as well as several firearms.” Prosecutors said: “The television in the living room was found playing the war shooting game Call of Duty at a very high volume.”

An autopsy conducted on Monday confirmed suicide, Nevi said, adding that the video system at his home “is being run to better understand the circumstances of the tragedy.”