Gunman Mohamed Merah’s brother was questioned by France’s domestic intelligence in Paris on Saturday, after saying he was “proud” of his brother’s murders, according to a French police source.
Abdelkader Merah was transported from Toulouse to Paris along with his wife, whose name was not revealed. Prosecutor Francois Molins told Reuters that Police had found explosives in a car belonging to Abdelkader, who was already known to security services for having helped smuggle jihadist militants into Iraq in 2007.
Abdelkader Merah and his wife are being detained for questioning at the headquarters of DCRI, the domestic intelligence agency, in a suburb of Paris.
A judge must decide now whether there are grounds for opening legal proceedings against the couple.
According to the Telegraph’s Harriet Alexander, on the Sunday evening before the Ozar HaTorah murders, Abdelkader and Mohammed Merah had dinner together. Early the next morning, Mohamed drove a stolen scooter to the school and murdered three children and a rabbi.
Abdelkader’s mobile phone was found discarded near the school, police sources told Le Parisien newspaper.