A twenty two year-old man in France has killed five members of his family, including his father and three younger siblings, after holding them hostage.
The man was reported to have barricaded himself in a home with his father, stepmother, and three children in the small eastern town of Douvres.
According to local reports, negotiators descended on the scene overnight and established a perimeter around the town before attempting in vain to maintain contact with the suspect throughout the night.
The man, armed with a firearm and a large katana, began executing his family members early Wednesday. The killer’s other victims included his mother-in-law, originally from Gironde, his 17 -year-old sister, his 15-year-old half-brother and his 5-year-old half-sister.
Armed officers stormed the house and killed him, but it was too late to save the remaining five hostages, including three children.
Town mayor Christian Limousin said the family had moved into the house where the murders took place in July of 2020 and ‘began to invest in the village’.
