Terror suspect arrested over plot to assassinate French President Emmanuel Macron

The 23-year-old man was taken into custody in Paris on suspicion of planning to murder the President in a terror attack during the capital’s Bastille Day parade that’ll take place on July 14.

A prosecuting source told French radio station RMC that he was reportedly arrested after attempting to buy a Kalashnikov assault rifle online.  The suspect spoke of “extreme” nationalist views and also said he wanted to kill “blacks, Arabs, Jews and homosexuals”.

The suspect was also said to have threatened police with a kitchen knife as officers swooped to arrest him in the Argenteuil. Investigators later found more weapons in his car.

Paris prosecutor’s office confirmed on Monday through its spokeswoman Agnes Thibault-Lecuivre that he faces preliminary charges of planning an individual terrorist attack. She also said the suspect’s plans were vague and not yet finalised, adding he appeared to have been acting alone.

The suspect told police during an interview in custody that he wanted to make a political statement by assassinating the French President on the Champs-Elysees.