A national tribute will be paid to the two prison officers killed in the attack on a van in the Eure region on Wednesday 22 May. Emmanuel Macron will attend the ceremony at the former Caen prison

Emmanuel Macron ‘will pay a national tribute to prison captain Fabrice Moello and brigadier Arnaud Garcia,’ announced the Élysée on Sunday 19 May. The ceremony will take place on Wednesday 22 May at noon at the former Caen prison (Calvados). The two prison officers lost their lives last Tuesday when their van was attacked in Incarville (Eure). The ambush, which led to the escape of a multi-recidivist prisoner, also left three people injured.

Around ‘350 investigators’ are working to find the perpetrators of the attack and the escaped prisoner, Mohamed Amra, with significant progress being made in their search, Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin said on Thursday.

Following Tuesday’s events, prison officers began a blockade of prisons. This action caused disruption to the operation of the justice system across France for three days, leading in particular to the postponement or interruption of trials when prisoners could not be extracted from their cells to appear. In response, the Ministry of Justice proposed measures to reinforce the security of officers on Friday evening.