Man Tries to Drive Car Into Crowd Outside of French Mosque, Police Say

French police arrested a man who attempted to drive a car into a group of people in front of a mosque in Créteil, a suburb of Paris.

Witnesses saw the man try and fail to drive over roadside barriers to reach the area directly in front of the mosque on Thursday evening. He did not injure anyone with the vehicle and fled the scene after hitting a median, according to a statement from French police.

The statement said police apprehended the man at his home and will determine the suspect’s motivations before deciding his criminal responsibility. French newspaper Le Parisien identified him as 43 years old, and reported he said he wanted to “avenge the Bataclan and the Champs-Elysees,” referring to recent attacks in Paris by Islamist terrorists.

Earlier this month, one person died and nine others were injured when a man rammed his van into pedestrians outside a mosque in London.