The ISIS Paris Shooter Had Long History Of Radicalism And Violence

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By Russ Read

The ISIS terrorist responsible for Thursday’s shooting in Paris, France had an extremely violent criminal history and radical past.

It is difficult to tell when a radical believer will turn to violence, but in the case of Karim Cheurfi, also known as Abu Yusuf al-Beljiki, violence and hatred for the police was a known factor. Here is a list of some of the terrorist’s warning signs:

1. Cheurfi was arrested and charged for shooting police officers in 2001. He stole a car in 2001, which led to a car chase with police. Cheurfi shot the officer and the officer’s brother after crashing into a ditch. He was arrested two days later after he stole a gun from a police officer, shooting him three times. Cheurfi later stole another officer’s gun while in custody, causing several officers to subdue him. He received a 20 year prison sentence which was later reduced to 15 in 2005.

2. Cheurfi had a violent criminal history before shooting cops. He was known to have engaged in robbery in 2001, years before shooting police, according to Le Parisien.

3. He was a known extremist. French intelligence said Cheurfi was known to harbor radical beliefs, according to BFMTV.

4. He wrote about his desire to shoot police officers. Cheurfi bragged about his desire to kill police on Telegram, a messaging service terrorists commonly use.

French police officers shot and killed Cheurfi shortly after his attack on the Champs-Elysees. The Islamic State took credit for the shooting a few hours later. He reportedly acted alone.