French police commander murdered in front of his home, Islamic State claims responsibility

By Reuters/Mathieu Rosemain, Richard Lough June 13, 2016 | 05:19 pm PT

Police also found the body of a dead woman in the house -- and a three year old boy who was alive. Photo by Reuters

A 42-year-old police commander was stabbed to death in front of his home on Monday night in the Paris suburb of Magnanville and his assailant, who had barricaded himself in the policeman's house, was later shot dead by members of an elite police unit, officials said.

Policemen also found the body of a dead woman in the house and a surviving 3-year-old boy, the spokesman for the Interior Ministry, Pierre-Henry Brandet, said on BFM TV minutes after the elite RAID unit stormed the house.

The woman was "most probably the wife" of the commander, prosecutor Vincent Lesclous told reporters.

"We have no certainty about the motivations" of the assailant, Lesclous added. (Reporting by Mathieu Rosemain, editing by G Crosse)

Islamic State was responsible for the stabbing death of a police commander in front of his home in a Paris suburb Monday night, the militant group's Amaq news agency said.

"Source to Amaq agency: Islamic State fighter kills deputy chief of the police station in the city of Les Mureaux and his wife," Amaq said on its news website.