An investigation for attempted murder of a person entrusted with a public-service mission has been opened in Nice after a school director and a teacher were allegedly assaulted by the mother of a student on Monday morning. The woman’s police custody was extended, according to the Nice prosecutor’s office.
The 36-year-old woman, whose two children attend the school near central Nice, reportedly arrived at around 9 a.m. seeking an urgent meeting with the director. Prosecutor Damien Martinelli said initial findings indicated that she pointed a firearm at the director while accusing her of failing to address alleged sexual assaults involving one of her children.
According to the prosecutor, the woman slapped the director and pulled her hair before putting the weapon back in her waistband. She allegedly pointed it at the director again and pulled the trigger, but no shot was fired, adding that she had only two bullets. She then reportedly struck the director in the face with the weapon and placed a knife against her cheek before leaving the office about an hour after entering.
As she left, the woman allegedly confronted another teacher, repeated the accusations, slapped her and pointed the firearm at her after activating it. She then left the school and was arrested shortly afterward at her home.
The suspect, who denies committing any violence, told investigators that she holds Tunisian and Italian nationality and works as a nursing assistant. The prosecutor said she had previously been convicted twice, including for violence with a weapon in 2019. A search of her home did not locate the handgun allegedly used in the incident.
The Nice judicial police are leading the investigation. Education Minister Edouard Geffray described the attack as “intolerable” and said that targeting staff members while they were carrying out their duties was an attack on the entire education system.
Nice Mayor Eric Ciotti visited the school and described the incident as exceptionally violent and serious. He said it had caused major shock within the city’s education community and that no pupils had witnessed the events. Nice education authority rector Emmanuel Roux also visited the school, announcing the deployment of an academic security team and psychological support for staff.
Sources: Le Monde.