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How Twitter Tracked the French Terror Suspects

Members of GIPN and of RAID, French police special forces, are pictured in Corcy, near Villers-Cotterets, north-east of Paris, on Jan. 8, 2015, where the two armed suspects from the attack on French satirical weekly newspaper Charlie Hebdo were spotted in a gray Clio.
Francois Nascimbeni—AFP/Getty Images
By Noah Rayman
January 8, 2015

Thousands of police and soldiers were searching for Saïd and Chérif Kouachi on Thursday in connection with the killing of 12 people in an attack on the office of the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo. But Twitter was never far behind.

The suspects were first seen in a grey Renault Clio in the Aisne area of Picardie, north-east of Paris.

They were next reported to have robbed a gas station in nearby Villers-Cotteret.

A French journalist later tweeted a photo of the gas station which had been sealed off by police.

The search then moved to Crepy-en-Valois as convoys of police vehicles entered the town.

A local radio station tweeted pictures of military helicopters hovering in the area.

The search then moved to Abbaye de Longpoint.

And then onto the nearby forest.

There is no official confirmation of the whereabouts of Saïd and Chérif Kouachi and Twitter may prove to have been inaccurate. But we’ll need to keep an eye on social media to find out.

Paris Police Respond to Charlie Hebdo Attack
Armed gunmen face police officers near the offices of the French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo in Paris on Jan. 7, 2015.
Armed gunmen face police officers near the offices of the French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo in Paris on Jan. 7, 2015.
Anne Gelbard—AFP/Getty Images
An injured person is evacuated outside the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo's office, in Paris, Jan. 7, 2015.
An injured person is evacuated outside the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo's office, in Paris, Jan. 7, 2015.
Thibault Camus—AP
A bullet impact is seen in a window of a building next to the French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo's office, in Paris, Jan. 7, 2015.
A bullet impact is seen in a window of a building next to the French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo's office, in Paris, Jan. 7, 2015.
Thibault Camus—AP
President Francois Hollande arrives after a shooting at the Paris offices of Charlie Hebdo, a satirical newspaper, Jan. 7, 2015.
President Francois Hollande arrives after a shooting at the Paris offices of Charlie Hebdo, a satirical newspaper, Jan. 7, 2015.
Christian Hartmann—Reuters
French police officers and forensic experts examine the car used by armed gunmen who stormed the Paris offices of satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo on Jan. 7, 2015 in Paris.
French police officers and forensic experts examine the car used by armed gunmen who stormed the Paris offices of satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo on Jan. 7, 2015 in Paris.
Domique Faget—AFP/Getty Images
Ambulances gather in the street outside the French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo's office, in Paris, Jan. 7, 2015.
Ambulances gather in the street outside the French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo's office, in Paris, Jan. 7, 2015.
Francois Mori—AP
People stand outside the French satirical newspaper <i>Charlie Hebdo</i>'s office after a shooting, in Paris on Jan. 7, 2015
People stand outside the French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo's office after a shooting, in Paris on Jan. 7, 2015
Thibault Camus—AP
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Write to Noah Rayman at noah.rayman@time.com.

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