French hostage Florent Lemacon was Killed by a Bullet Fired by one of the French marines

Europe 1 reported that the conclusion was based on an autopsy performed on Lemacon as well as testimony by his wife and the marine who fired the fatal shot. According to the report, when the assault on the Tanit began, Lemacon stood to protect his wife and three-year-old son, and was struck by what was described as a 'reflex shot' fired by the marine.

Florent Lemacon was thereby killed by a member of the French armed forces during the ill-advised and failed rescue attempt. Lemacon was aboard the Tanit yacht, which had been captured by Somali pirates last month. Special Forces stormed the yacht in order to free the hostages, but Lemacon was hit by a bullet from the commandoes storming the vessel.

In a report on Monday, May 4, 2009, Europe1 radio said that Lemacon was hit by a bullet fired by French troops, when they stormed the Tanit on 10 April. It had been so far maintained as unclear by the French Authorities whether Lemacon was killed by friendly fire or by one of the pirates on board. But also French Defence Minister Herve Morin knew it all the way along and therefore had already early admitted that Lemacon could have been the victim of friendly fire.'We cannot exclude that, in the exchange of fire between pirates and commandos, the (fatal) shot came from the French side,' Morin said on April 11, the day after the botched rescue.

Lemacon apparently was shot as he tried to shield his son. Europe 1 did not reveal its sources in the report, but did say that the findings of the coroner, the account of the assault and the testimony of Lemacon’s wife coincide. The fatal bullet has not been found, but it pierced Lemacon’s hand before hitting him in the face.

Source - Ecoterra Intl, May 4, 2009

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