The ‘drug-taking weird loner’ who killed 84 people in Bastille Day truck terror attack is branded a ‘s**t’ by his cousin who says he drank alcohol, ate pork and was NO muslim
Mohamed Lahouaiej Bouhlel's image reportedly found on ID papers next to the 31-year-old's body after he was killed by police in dramatic shoot-out
A TERRORIST trucker who massacred partygoers was described last night as a “weird loner” who took drugs and never went to a mosque - but was a convicted violent thug who beat his wife.
Mohamed Lahouaiej Bouhlel, 31, was unmasked as the “Bastard of Bastille” who ploughed a 24-tonne truck through celebrating crowds of innocent people.
A violent profile of the mass killer emerged last night after cops revealed he had a history of petty crime, including burglary and theft.
He received a six-month suspended sentence for violent conduct in March after hurling a wooden pallet at a driver in a road rage attack.
Neighbours describe him as a “weird loner” with “George Clooney hair” who was going through a messy divorce after his wife kicked him out two years ago.
But relatives claim the father-of-three was an unlikely Islamic terrorist as he drank alcohol, ate pork and drugs.
He never prayed or attended mosque recently sacked from his delivery driver job after he fell asleep at the wheel and crashed into four vehicles on a highway and been involved in a bar brawl, it emerged.
Bouhlel hails from Msaken, in Tunisia, just a few miles from the beach resort of Sousse where an ISIS gunman massacred 30 British holidaymakers.
His father was a member of an extremist group and family members were jailed for Islamic extremism, reports in Tunisia claimed.
But Bouhlel himself was not known to anti-terrorist investigators in France.
Police carried out a controlled explosion on a hired lorry parked near his town centre flat and detained his wife after a raid on a flat in northern Nice.
A neighbour, who gave her name as Jasmine, 40 said Bouhlel was a “loner who was rude.”
She added: “He was rude and bit weird. We would hold the door open for him and he would just blank us. He kept himself to himself but would always rant about his wife.
“He had marital problems and would tell people in the local cafe.
“He scared my children though. They will be scarred by this. They were down there last night - they are 13 and 7 - they could have been involved."
She added: “He was very smart with the same haircut as George Clooney.”
His neighbour - who lived next door - and didn’t want to be named, said: “To be honest I hardly ever saw him.
“He was well dressed, and the last time I saw him he was with two other guys.
“I can’t remember when it was.”
Other neighbours described Bouhlel as a ‘lonely’ and ‘silent’ man, with one saying he never returned their greetings.
One said: “He was more into women than religion.”
A neighbour of Bouhlel’s wife, who only gave her name as Newal, said: “The wife and her family are lovely. They are nice people.
“But the husband - he was weird and bizarre.
“It was what caused the problem. And he was really horrible to her, he would beat and hit the wife.
“She was much better when she left him.”
A cousin of Bouhlel’s wife Hajer Khalfallah, said: “Bouhlel was not religious.
“He did not go to the mosque, he did not pray, he did not observe Ramadan. He drank alcohol, ate pork and took drugs. This is all forbidden under Islam.
“He was not a Muslim, he was a s***.
“He beat his wife, my cousin, he was a nasty piece of work.”
Bouhlel was known to local police but not placed on any terrorist watch list set up after the Paris attacks last November.
French Justice Minister Jean-Jacques Urvoas said Bouhlel was convicted for violent conduct in March.
He said: “There was an altercation between him and another driver and he hurled a wooden pallet at the man.”
As it was his first conviction, Bouhlel was given a suspended sentence and had to contact police once a week, which he did, Urvoas added.
Paris prosecutor Francois Molins said: “His wife was placed in protective custody this morning at 11am.
“He was known to police for several crimes of violence, theft and criminal damage between 2010 and 2016 and was convicted on March 24 2016 in Nice of a suspended six month sentence for violence with weapon committed in January.
“He was not known at a national level and had never shown any signs of radicalisation.”
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Tunisian security officials said Bouhlel came from the Tunisian town of Msaken which he last visited four years ago.
Msaken is about 10 km (six miles) outside the beach resort of Sousse where 38 people, including 30 British holidaymakers, were killed by ISIS gunman Seifeddine Rezgui Yacoubi, in June last year.
It is claimed in Tunisia that his father was a known extremist member of the Ennahdha Islamic party, which was banned until 2011.
The mayor of Msaken visited his family’s home but found it was empty, according to local reports.
Sources claim that some relatives of the Nice trucker were convicted for Islamic extremism during the period of deposed President Ben Ali and then leave benefiting general amnesty of 2011.
But Bouhlel was not known by the Tunisian authorities to hold radical or Islamist views, sources said.
French authorities were quizzing his estranged wife and other family members.
What we know so far
- A 19-tonne truck ploughed into Bastille Day revellers watching a firework display at around 10.30pm on Thursday night in the French Riviera town of Nice.
- At least 84 people were killed as the truck zig-zagged for 30 minutes along a 2km-long promenade in a bid to strike as many people as possible.
- Nearly 202 were injured, with 25 on life-support and 52 critical in hospital.
- Police killed the driver of the truck in a firefight as he sat at the wheel of the vehicle.
- Authorities confirmed the truck was loaded with guns and grenades.
- Local media has identified the attacker as Mohamed Lahouaiej-Bouhlel - a 31-year-old French Tunisian and father-of-three.
- Neighbours described Bouhlel as a “loner” as police scoured his flat on Friday afternoon.
- No group has officially claimed responsibility for the attack but ISIS-related groups have celebrated atrocity online.
- French president Francois Hollande said: “All of France is under the threat of Islamic terrorism.”
- Among the first victims named were American father Sean Copeland, 51, and his son Brodie, 11, along with Russian finance student Victoria Savchenko, 21.
The crazed gunman ploughed through men, women and children “like a bowling ball” for more than a mile before opening fire.
Dramatic footage also emerged of brave victims trying to stop the attack by clinging to the doors of the lorry before being thrown under the wheels and becoming “jammed”.
After being stopped by armed police, who sprayed more than 40 bullets into the lorry’s windscreen, the attacker exchanged fire with officers using a 7.65 pistol, before being shot dead.
Police said a huge arsenal of guns, grenades and "larger weapons" were found in the vehicle alongside the driver, as pro-ISIS groups celebrated the horror massacre.
More than 50 children were taken to hospital after the atrocity at around 10.30pm last night.
The first victims were today named as American dad and son Sean Copeland, 51 and Brodie, 11.
Sean and Brodie were on a “dream holiday” to the south of France from Texas and were confirmed dead by friends and family online.
Haley Copeland wrote: “By now many of you have heard about the 80 people that have died in Nice, France today from a terrorist attack driving through a parade.
“Two of those 80 people were American and those two people happen to be uncle Sean and 11-year-old cousin Brodie.
“They were on vacation with my two other cousins and aunt celebrating a birthday.”