This Thursday evening, shortly following 6 p.m., our editorial staff learned from a good source of a tense situation in Farciennes, in the Provincial Institute of Technical and Vocational Education for Social Advancement, rue du Puits Communal. According to the first information we had, an armed man was holding several people. Shortly before 7 p.m., the police were able to apprehend the man. His hostages are safe and sound.
The man, a 23-year-old resident of Gilly, entered the school and took hostage with a weapon 15 adults present in the establishment. He called 101 demanding a ransom of 25,000 euros to free the staff and students. The police very quickly arrived on the spot and directly mounted a device. After making contact with the hostage taker, the police were able to take advantage of a moment of inattention by the individual to intercept him.
Contacted by us, the mayor of Farciennes stressed that no one was injured. “Luckily it was a dummy gun“, explains the mayor of Farciennes Hugues Bayet. “The remarks of the hostage taker are for the moment still a little incoherent.“It seems that the man owed a large sum of money to an acquaintance. Some hostages are particularly shocked. The latter were taken care of by a crisis unit and received psychological support.
According to the mayor, the security perimeter around the school was lifted in the evening. Traffic in the area was able to resume as normal.
