Parents of Paris suspect freed, no role seen 'at this stage'
Posted May 15, 2018 7:00 am
PARIS (AP) - The parents of a 20-year-old man who was fatally shot by police after he stabbed five people in Paris have been let go after more than two days in custody while counterterrorism investigators still are questioning a friend of the dead suspect.
Khamzat Azimov killed one person and wounded four others in Saturday night's attack near the French capital's old opera house. The Islamic State group claimed responsibility.
A judicial official said his parents were released Tuesday night "in the absence of elements incriminating them at this stage."
The suspect's friend, identified only as Abdul Hakim A., was being held for more questioning.
The official wasn't authorized to speak publicly on the ongoing investigation.
Azimov, a French citizen, was born in Chechnya, a largely Muslim Russian republic.
A bullet hole seen on the window of a cafe located near the area where the assailant of a knife attack was shot dead by police officers, in central Paris, Sunday May 13, 2018. The man behind a deadly knife attack in central Paris was born in Chechnya and had been on police radar for radicalism, and his parents have been detained for questioning, French authorities said Sunday. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)
The Associated Press
CORRECTS THE FIRST NAME TO KHAMZAT This undated photo made available to the Associated Press on the condition that its source not be revealed, shows Khamzat Azimov. The man behind a deadly knife attack in central Paris was born in Chechnya and had been on police radar for radicalism, and his parents have been detained for questioning, French authorities said Sunday, May 13, 2018. (AP Photo)
The Associated Press
A blood trail of the assailant of a knife attack Saturday that left at least two dead including the assailant is seen in central Paris, Sunday May 13, 2018. The man behind a deadly knife attack in central Paris was born in Chechnya and had been on police radar for radicalism, and his parents have been detained for questioning, French authorities said Sunday. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)
The Associated Press
A dead body lays under a blanket after a knife attack Saturday that left at least two dead including the assailant in central Paris, early Sunday May 13, 2018. A knife-wielding assailant killed at least one person and injured four others in a lively neighborhood near Paris' famed Opera Garnier before he was killed by police Saturday night. The Islamic State group claimed the attacker as one of its "soldiers. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)
The Associated Press
A dead body lays under a blanket after a knife attack Saturday that left at least two dead including the assailant in central Paris, early Sunday May 13, 2018. A knife-wielding assailant killed at least one person and injured four others in a lively neighborhood near Paris' famed Opera Garnier before he was killed by police Saturday night. The Islamic State group claimed the attacker as one of its "soldiers. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)
The Associated Press
Scientific police officers investigate after a knife attack in central Paris, Saturday May 12, 2018. A knife-wielding assailant killed at least one person and injured four others in a lively neighborhood near Paris' famed Opera Garnier on Saturday, and then was killed by police.(AP Photo/Thibault Camus)
The Associated Press
French police officers guard the site after a knife attack in central Paris, Saturday May 12, 2018. A knife-wielding assailant killed at least one person and injured four others in a lively neighborhood near Paris' famed Opera Garnier on Saturday, and then was killed by police.(AP Photo/Thibault Camus)
The Associated Press
Police officers cordon off the area after a knife attack in central Paris, Saturday May 12, 2018. The Paris police said the attacker was subdued by officers during the stabbing attack in the 2nd arrondissement or district of the French capital Saturday. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)
The Associated Press
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