Aug 21, 2015 · PARIS — The two American service members who tackled a gunman on a high-speed train traveling from Amsterdam to Paris rushed him even though he was fully ...
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American Who Helped Disarm Train Shooter Recounts Dramatic Scene The Huffington Post - World (Today) - ARRAS, France (AP) -- One serves in the Air Force, another ...
Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve
spoke after a shooting on a train left three people wounded, saying two
United States citizens helped disarm the attacker.
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS on Publish Date August 21, 2015.
Photo by Philippe Huguen/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images.
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PARIS — The two American service members who tackled a gunman on a high-speed train
traveling from Amsterdam to Paris rushed him even though he was fully
armed, then grabbed him by the neck and beat him over the head with his
own automatic rifle until he was unconscious, one of them said in
television interviews here on Saturday.
The
suspect entered the train car carrying an AK-47 and a handgun,
according to Alex Skarlatos, the service member who was interviewed. “I
looked over at Spencer and said, ‘Let’s go,’” said Mr. Skarlatos,
identified as a specialist in the Oregon Army National Guard returning
from Afghanistan. With him was a friend, Airman First Class Spencer
Stone. “And he jumped,” Mr. Skarlatos said. “I followed behind him by
about three seconds. Spencer got the guy first, grabbed the guy by the
neck, I grabbed the handgun.”
The
suspect wounded at least one passenger before the two men subdued him,
and their quick action averted what officials said could have been a
blood bath. On Saturday morning the French news media, government and
social media praised their actions, and President Obama also hailed
their bravery.
Photo
Alek Skarlatos, left, a specialist in the Oregon Army National Guard, and Airman First Class Spencer Stone.Credit
Pascal Rossignol/Reuters; U.S. Air Force
A third American, Anthony Sadler, a friend of the two servicemen who was traveling with them, also helped restrain the suspect.
All
three Americans were decorated with an honor by the French city of
Arras, where the train pulled in after the episode. President François
Hollande of France will meet with them in coming days, the Élysée Palace announced.
Mr. Stone was severely cut by the suspect in the neck and hand and received treatment at a hospital in northern France. His injuries are not considered life-threatening. An amateur video
taken in the immediate aftermath and uploaded to YouTube shows the
suspect on the ground with his legs in the air and his hands tied behind
his back, while another man — apparently Mr. Stone, kneels shirtless
and evidently in pain. Groans are heard, and a voice saying, “Dude, I
tried to shoot him.”
The
suspect was identified by Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve of France
on Saturday as a 26-year-old Moroccan man known to Spanish authorities
as belonging to “the radical Islamist movement.” Mr. Cazeneuve, however,
cautioned that the French police had not yet fully confirmed his
identity. French officials had identified the man as a security risk,
but he was not under surveillance and had apparently spent little time
in France.
Mr.
Cazeneuve said the man lived in Spain in 2014 and Belgium in 2015.
According to an official involved in Spain’s antiterrorism efforts, who
spoke on the condition of anonymity, the suspect lived for about one
year in Algeciras, in southern Spain, but left in March 2014. He had
been kept under surveillance by the Spanish police during his time in
Algeciras because of past criminal activities linked to drug
trafficking, and the Spanish police shared that information with their
French counterparts, according to the Spanish official.
After
being arrested in Arras on Friday night, the suspect was taken early
Saturday to the headquarters of the antiterrorism police outside Paris,
Mr. Cazeneuve said, and was being interrogated. French news reports said
that he had denied having terrorist aims and that he had said he merely
intended to rob the passengers.
Photo
Anthony Sadler, a friend of the two servicemen credited with foiling the attack, also helped restrain the suspect.Credit
aptn, via Associated Press
But
the arsenal described by the minister suggested otherwise: a
Kalashnikov assault rifle, a Luger automatic pistol, nine cartridges and
a sharp blade — a “cutter,” the interior minister said, which he used
to wound Mr. Spencer.
The
violent encounter was over in barely two minutes. But if not for the
quick action by the two American servicemen and the suspect’s
malfunctioning automatic rifle, many lives could have been lost. “It
could have been a real carnage,” said Chris Norman, a British
businessman who helped restrain the suspect after he had been subdued.
Mr.
Norman, interviewed on television, said: “The guy actually came up, he
pulled out a cutter, started cutting Spencer. He cut Spencer behind the
neck, he nearly cut his thumb off. We eventually got him under control.
The
train, the express Thalys between Amsterdam and Paris, was hurtling
through the Belgian countryside. A French passenger headed for the
toilets in car No. 12, and suddenly found himself face to face with a
man with a Kalashnikov over his shoulder, Mr. Cazeneuve said.
The
passenger “courageously” tried to tackle the man, who fired off several
shots, the minister said, hitting another passenger, of dual
French-American citizenship. A train employee ran through the carriage.
Mr. Norman and the two American servicemen looked up, saw the man with
the Kalashnikov and ducked down into their seats. It was then that the
two Americans decided to take action. The train was still moving at top
speed.
“Spencer ran a good 10 meters to get to the guy,” Mr. Skarlatos told television interviewers.
After
they tackled the suspect, Mr. Skarlatos said he pulled the handgun away
from the man and threw it to the side. He then grabbed the Kalashnikov,
which was lying at the suspect’s feet, he told television interviewers.
The suspect was yelling at the two to give him back his gun, said Mr.
Sadler, the third American.
Instead,
Mr. Skarlatos began beating the suspect with his own rifle. Mr.
Skarlatos said he “started muzzle-thumping him in the head with it.”
Other passengers joined in, and Mr. Stone held him in a chokehold until
he lost consciousness, Mr. Skarlatos said.
With
the gunman subdued, Mr. Stone badly cut and bloodied and the other
passengers stunned, Mr. Skarlatos discovered that the suspect’s guns had
malfunctioned.
“He
had pulled the trigger on the AK, the primer was just faulty, so the
gun didn’t go off, luckily,” Mr. Skarlatos said. “And he didn’t know how
to fix it, which is also very lucky.” In addition, he had not been able
to load his own handgun. “There was no magazine in it, so he either
dropped it accidentally or didn’t load it properly, so he was only able
to get what appeared to be one shot off,” Mr. Skarlatos said.
Meanwhile,
despite bleeding heavily, Mr. Stone went to the aid of the gunshot
victim, Mr. Sadler said. “Even though he was injured, he went to help
the other man who was injured,” Mr. Sadler said. “Without his help, he
would have died.”
The entire episode happened so quickly that the three men barely had time to think about the danger they had faced.
“We
were scared for sure, but, I mean, adrenaline mostly just takes over,
because I didn’t have time to think,” Mr. Skarlatos said. “I didn’t
realize or fully comprehend what was going on. It felt like it was a
dream or a movie.”
The
United States European Command Commander, Gen. Philip M. Breedlove,
praised the men in a statement on Saturday: “These men are heroes.
Actions like this clearly illustrate the courage and commitment our
young men and women have all the time, whether they are on duty or on
leave.”
Reporting was contributed by
Aurelien Breeden, Lilia Blaise and Elian Peltier from Paris, Raphael
Minder from Madrid, and Helene Cooper from Washington.
end quote from:
Gavin Sheridan · @gavinsblog
Re #Thalys. Confined space similar to a jet, nowhere to run, hard to call for backup. Casualties could have been enormous?After they tackled the suspect, Mr. Skarlatos said he pulled the handgun away from the man and threw it to the side. He then grabbed the Kalashnikov, which was lying at the suspect’s feet, he told television interviewers. The suspect was yelling at the two to give him back his gun, said Mr. Sadler, the third American.Instead, Mr. Skarlatos began beating the suspect with his own rifle. Mr. Skarlatos said he “started muzzle-thumping him in the head with it.” Other passengers joined in, and Mr. Stone held him in a chokehold until he lost consciousness, Mr. Skarlatos said.With the gunman subdued, Mr. Stone badly cut and bloodied and the other passengers stunned, Mr. Skarlatos discovered that the suspect’s guns had malfunctioned.“He had pulled the trigger on the AK, the primer was just faulty, so the gun didn’t go off, luckily,” Mr. Skarlatos said. “And he didn’t know how to fix it, which is also very lucky.” In addition, he had not been able to load his own handgun. “There was no magazine in it, so he either dropped it accidentally or didn’t load it properly, so he was only able to get what appeared to be one shot off,” Mr. Skarlatos said.Meanwhile, despite bleeding heavily, Mr. Stone went to the aid of the gunshot victim, Mr. Sadler said. “Even though he was injured, he went to help the other man who was injured,” Mr. Sadler said. “Without his help, he would have died.”The entire episode happened so quickly that the three men barely had time to think about the danger they had faced.“We were scared for sure, but, I mean, adrenaline mostly just takes over, because I didn’t have time to think,” Mr. Skarlatos said. “I didn’t realize or fully comprehend what was going on. It felt like it was a dream or a movie.”The United States European Command Commander, Gen. Philip M. Breedlove, praised the men in a statement on Saturday: “These men are heroes. Actions like this clearly illustrate the courage and commitment our young men and women have all the time, whether they are on duty or on leave.”
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