Martial arts fighter identified by club as victim of suspected racist attack near Paris

The victim of Friday’s shooting in near Paris, which French President Emmanuel Macron described as a “racist terror attack,” was identified by his club as 26-year-old Pengo Bossio Wangi, an amateur mixed martial arts fighter.

The club announced his identity in a statement posted on Instagram, although French authorities have yet to publicly identify the victim.

“Pengo was one of us. Nothing justifies taking a life this way,” the Atch Academy in Aubervilliers, north of Paris, said in an Instagram statement paying tribute to him.

At least five other people, including a 12-year-old girl, were injured when a gunman opened fire from a vehicle at three locations in Trappes and La Verrière, about 30 km west of Paris, over a span of approximately 15 minutes.

"These people were targeted because of their skin colour or perceived religion, and for no other reason," Macron told reporters after meeting officials and residents in Trappes, adding that "there is no place for this in France."

A suspect was arrested shortly after the shooting, and the National Anti-Terrorism Prosecutor’s Office took over the investigation.

The suspect was identified as Kévin T., born in 1987, although authorities have not disclosed his full surname. He had four previous convictions, which had been automatically expunged under French law.

Investigators found a Sten-type submachine gun and a tear gas canister inside the suspect’s car. A search of his apartment also uncovered three gas cylinders and electrical wires connected to a timer, which authorities described as a “trap.”

A member of the suspect’s immediate family was also taken into police custody following the fatal shooting.