Frenchpolice stopped an apparent bomb attack outside a US bank inParisearly Saturday when they arrested a man about to set off a homemade explosive device, sources close to the case said.
The incident occurred around 3:30am (0130 GMT) in front of a Bank of America building in the chic 8th arrondissement, a couple of streets from the Champs-Elysees.
Police grabbed the man just after he placed a device, made of five litres of liquid believed to be fuel and an ignition system, one of the sources said.
France'scounter-terrorismprosecutor's office told AFP on Saturday it has taken over the investigation. The office confirmed that a suspect caught in the act was in police custody and said it was investigating "attempted damage by fire or other dangerous means in connection with a terrorist undertaking" and a "terrorist criminal conspiracy".
Both the Paris judicial police and France's domestic intelligence service, the General Directorate for Internal Security (DGSI), are involved in the probe, the office said.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP)
Originally published on France24
