Nantes student Assaults: man⁤ Arrested, Police Seek Additional Victims

NANTES, France (AP)⁤ — A​ 21-year-old man is in custody in Nantes, accused‍ of multiple rapes and attempted rapes targeting female‍ students since fall 2024. Teh suspect,apprehended‍ after a⁤ months-long investigation,has confessed to the crimes,according to the Nantes⁢ prosecutor’s office,which also announced a search for potential‍ additional victims.

Student’s Report ‍Leads to Arrest

The break​ in ‌the⁢ case came ‍April 14 ⁣when a 23-year-old student reported⁤ an assault to ‌the Nantes gendarmerie. According to a​ press release ⁢from Public Prosecutor Antoine Leroy,⁣ the woman stated she was attacked ⁤while jogging ​on a⁣ greenway in Carquefou, just north of Nantes.

‌ ⁣ The victim ⁤described her assailant as a thin man, approximately 5 feet 11 inches tall, wearing a green hooded sweatshirt‍ and a ⁤dark neck covering. She said the man grabbed her shoulder and wielded a knife. Her screams startled the⁣ attacker,who​ then fled.

⁣ Acting ​on the report, authorities apprehended a⁤ man near the scene of the assault.After his ‌arrest, DNA⁣ evidence linked ⁢him to‌ other incidents‌ in northern Nantes, particularly around university residences, according to the prosecutor’s office.
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Details of Prior Attacks emerge

​ ⁤ The⁤ Nantes judicial police investigation uncovered three additional victims. The first incident occurred Nov. 17, 2024, when ⁣a 26-year-old​ student was attacked in the late afternoon. A hooded, knife-wielding man reportedly⁣ ordered‌ her to ‍undress and began to undo ⁣his belt. The victim’s ‌screams attracted witnesses, ‍causing the attacker‌ to flee.
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rape victim Tied to Tree

⁢ ⁣ Ten days later,on Nov. 27, the assailant escalated⁣ his attacks. Around 11 p.m., a 21-year-old student ‍was abducted by a masked individual. The victim reported that the ‍man placed a hood over her head, forced‍ her into the trunk of a black⁤ station wagon, and drove for approximately 15 minutes. She told investigators that the man then took her to ⁣a field, tied her ‍to a tree, and raped⁤ her before returning her to the area where she was abducted.

⁢ In early ‍January ‌2025, ⁢on‍ the 5th, another attack occurred.‍ A 21-year-old student was ⁣threatened by ⁤a man wielding ⁢an orange box cutter and wearing red sneakers.He demanded she undress, but she struggled, ‍and ‌he fled.A‌ black station wagon‍ was seen nearby.
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Police Appeal for More Victims to Come Forward

‌ ⁣ The 21-year-old suspect, born in Redon, was taken into custody April 24. He ​has been formally charged with abduction to facilitate a crime, rape with a weapon, attempted rape with a weapon, and aggravated assault by‍ a masked individual. He is currently being held in‍ pre-trial detention.

⁤ As part⁢ of the ongoing investigation, authorities are urging any other potential victims to come forward. The‍ Nantes ‌prosecutor’s ‌office is ‌particularly ‍interested in incidents that occurred​ in 2024 in the northern part of the⁢ city, specifically the Hippodrome and ⁣Savenay sectors, and also the commune of Savenay,‌ west of Nantes.
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