Ex-boyfriend arrested after stabbing 17-year-old 12 times near Reims station; girl critical
A 17-year-old girl is fighting for her life after being stabbed 12 times by her former boyfriend near the train station in Reims, France, on Friday evening. The 28-year-old suspect is in custody.
The attack
On Friday, June 12, around 8:40 p.m., a 17-year-old girl of Congolese nationality was stabbed at a bus stop near the central train station in Reims, northeastern France. She suffered 12 knife wounds, though one local news outlet reported six. Emergency services transported her to hospital in a critical condition.
- Stabbing occurs at a bus stop near Reims central train station.
- Suspect, the victim's ex-boyfriend, is arrested and taken into custody.
- Prosecutor opens investigation for attempted murder; suspect remains in custody.
- Victim remains in critical condition as of Saturday evening.
Suspect and arrest
The victim's ex-boyfriend, a 28-year-old Angolan man, was arrested shortly after the attack and placed in police custody. According to Prosecutor François Schneider, the suspect had no prior criminal record but was already the subject of an ongoing inquiry after a domestic violence complaint lodged by the same girl. He remained in custody as of Saturday evening.
Investigation and motive
An investigation for attempted murder has been opened.
The prosecutor's office also confirmed that a separate investigation into a domestic violence report concerning the suspect was underway.The motive appears to be the separation.
Victim's fight for life
The teenager, who was living in a care facility, was still fighting for her life on Saturday evening.
Her vital prognosis is still engaged.
National backdrop
The stabbing comes against a backdrop of rising intimate partner violence in France. Official figures published last October showed an 11% increase in conjugal femicides between 2023 and 2024, with 107 women killed by a current or former partner.
