A waiter was shot dead in Paris by a customer who reportedly became enraged after having to wait too long for their sandwich.
The incident took place on Friday night (August 16), when the 28-year-old waiter was working in a small restaurant, which serves sandwiches and pizza, in the Rue de la Piazza in Noisy-le-Grand, 15km east of Paris’s city centre.
The victim was shot in the shoulder with a handgun at around 9:15pm. Other employees called the authorities and attempts were made to revive the waiter but unfortunately he died at the scene.
According to La Parisien, witnesses told police the customer shot the waiter because his sandwich was not being prepared quickly enough.
A shopkeeper from the area, named Louise, recalled how she heard a loud bang before she left her store on Friday evening. Minutes later, she explained, a number of ambulances began arriving at the scene.
The shopkeeper said she regularly ordered from the pizzeria and described the staff there as ‘very nice’.
The gunman fled the scene and at the time of writing (August 18) they still appear to be on the loose. The public prosecutor’s office of Bobigny told AFP a murder investigation has been opened by the judicial police of Seine-Saint-Denis. Authorities are also conducting a manhunt for the shooter.
The restaurant is said to have only been open for three or four months, though some locals noted high crime levels in the area, notably drug-dealing and public drunkenness.
According to Gun Policy, in France only licensed gun owners may lawfully acquire, possess or transfer a firearm or ammunition. Owners must have a licence as well as a genuine reason to possess a firearm, for example hunting, and pass a background check which considers criminal, mental health and health records.
It’s unclear whether the shooter owned the gun legally.
A number of locals gathered outside the restaurant the day after the incident, with one woman describing the establishment as ‘quiet’ and ‘trouble-free’, adding the situation was very sad.
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Emily Brown first began delivering important news stories aged just 13, when she launched her career with a paper round. She graduated with a BA Hons in English Language in the Media from Lancaster University, and went on to become a freelance writer and blogger. Emily contributed to The Sunday Times Travel Magazine and Student Problems before becoming a journalist at UNILAD, where she works on breaking news as well as longer form features.