A young man suspected of having set fire to an unoccupied house in Bouches-du-Rhône, on which Corsican nationalist tags were found, was indicted on Friday September 29 by an anti-terrorism judge in Paris and placed in pre-trial detention, according to statements from a judicial source to Agence France-Presse. According to information from a source close to the case, this is the first time that an arson attack signed by the GCC (Ghjuventu Clandestina Corsa, the Corsican Clandestine Youth) has been committed on the continent.
The man, aged 22, was taken into custody on Monday. He was indicted for “criminal association with the aim of committing acts of terrorism and destruction of the property of others by a means dangerous for people in connection with a terrorist enterprise”, then imprisoned, according to the judicial source. Monday around 4 a.m., a fire ravaged a house in Ensuès-la-Redonne, on the Blue Coast, about twenty kilometers west of Marseille. “GCC” tags and a stylized drawing of Corsica were found on the facade of the house.
Corsica is currently experiencing an increase in arson attacks and explosions mainly targeting second homes, most often accompanied by nationalist tags. The Corsican National Liberation Front (FLNC) claimed responsibility for sixteen attacks in a press release on August 1, often against residences. This press release is the subject of an investigation by the National Anti-Terrorism Prosecutor’s Office for “criminal association with a view to preparing acts of terrorism”.