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.

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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