Loire: a man on trial for grabbing hold of a soldier taking part in Operation Sentinelle

The incident took place on 27 June 2017 on the streets of Saint-Étienne, when a 56-year-old man grabbed the leg of a soldier on patrol. Given the current terrorist threat, the question of whether he had attempted to steal the soldier’s weapon to carry out a terrorist act was initially raised during the hearing; however, the court quickly dismissed this possibility following testimony from the soldiers, who described a non-violent man who had quickly apologised to them. The man has been suffering from schizophrenia for around thirty years; the prosecution requested a four-month suspended prison sentence and compulsory treatment. The judge agreed, adding that he should be cared for in a residential care home.