In Isère, the mayor of Villeneuve-de-Marc hospitalized in serious condition after an attack
The suspect, a resident of the town, attempted to flee by car but crashed into a wall before managing to escape.
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The mayor of Villeneuve-de-Marc (Isère) is hospitalized in a serious condition after an attack on the afternoon of Wednesday, August 6, reports ICI Isère (formerly France Bleu) .
According to ICI Isère, Gilles Dussault was violently attacked shortly before 5 p.m. while walking with his son along a street in the town. According to the Vienne prosecutor's office, which is in charge of the investigation, the suspect attacked him with an "undetermined object."
The 63-year-old elected official was shot in the chest and taken conscious to Edouard Herriot Hospital in Lyon. His 28-year-old son suffered minor injuries and is being treated at a hospital in Vienna.
ICI Isère writes that according to initial investigations, the suspect is a resident of the town. He attempted to flee by car but crashed into a wall before managing to escape. An investigation into attempted murder has been opened.
In a press release, the Prefect of Isère, Catherine Séguin, "condemns in the strongest terms this serious and unacceptable act against elected officials who work for the general interest." She assures that the perpetrator of the attack "is actively being sought."
For his part, Emmanuel Macron described the X-related incident as a " cowardly act " and assured that " everything is being done " to find the perpetrator.
When an elected official is attacked, the nation stands by them. Our thoughts are with Gilles Dussault, mayor of Villeneuve-de-Marc, and his son, who were violently attacked.
When its representatives are attacked, the Republic must be severe and uncompromising. Everything is being done...
Interviewed on franceinfo on Wednesday, August 6, the president of the mayors of Isère denounced a situation that was " totally unacceptable, extremely serious ." Daniel Vitte, mayor of Montrevel, said he was " moved, shocked, and revolted ."
" Since 2020, this is the fourth attack on an elected official in the exercise of his duties, but this time the seriousness of the injuries we are being told about makes me even more outraged because we have a backlog of situations ," reacts Daniel Vitte.
The elected official speaks of " extreme situations, people who behave in an unspeakable manner ." The president of the mayors of Isère puts the frequency of these attacks into perspective, " extremely rare, but when they happen, it's a complete revolt: we are not prepared for this type of situation either ," he recalls. He finally expresses his "solidarity" with his colleague and the elected officials of the commune.
" Enough! Another level of aggression against a mayor and his son ," reacted David Lisnard, president of the Association of Mayors of France (AMF). " On behalf of the AMF, I extend our full support to our colleague in dire need and to his family, and I urge the State to fulfill its security duty. For all the victims and for the Republic ."
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