A man has been taken into custody following the emergence of a video that appears to capture an alleged attempted rape on a train near Paris. Local media reports indicate that the suspect was arrested on Friday evening by transport police in Mantes-la-Jolie, a town northwest of the capital.
The alleged victim, identified as Jhordana Dias, a 26-year-old Brazilian national, reportedly told Le Parisien newspaper that she was attacked earlier this month. She stated that a man boarded the train, pushed her, and attempted to remove her clothing. Her screams alerted another passenger, who began filming the ordeal. The video shows the man fleeing the train as it arrived at a station.
According to media reports, the man arrested claimed to be a 26-year-old Egyptian national but was not carrying identification at the time of his arrest. He remains in police custody.
The incident, which is said to have occurred on October 15th between the Choisy-le-Roi and Villeneuve-le-Roi train stations, has amplified discussions surrounding women’s safety in France. The woman who filmed the distressing footage, known only as Marguerite, has been widely praised for intervening and potentially preventing a more severe attack.
Ms. Dias, who reportedly does not speak French, filed a complaint with the police in Choisy-le-Roi, with her brother assisting in translation. The video has been widely shared across news outlets and social media, prompting many women to share their own experiences of harassment on public transport, highlighting a broader issue of safety concerns.
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