Police officer killed by Paris gunman is named

Paris police shooting gunman named by authorities

The gunman who shot dead a police officer and seriously injured two others on the Champs-Élysées in Paris has been named as Karim Cheurfi.

Officials said he was known to police and was detained in February, but was later released due to a lack of evidence.

Here is what we know:

A man believed to be the principal attacker was shot dead at the scene after opening fire on police
The slain officer has been identified as Xavier Jugele
A second man wanted in connection to the attack has reportedly handed himself in
Eyewitnesses said an attacker opened fire with a Kalashnikov gun
The counter-terrorism unit in Paris has launched an investigation
So-called Islamic State said it was behind the shooting
Police raids have been carried out in a suburb east of Paris which is believed to be linked to the attack

Xavier Jugele had previously responded to the terror attack on the Bataclan. Credit: Flag! / AP

The policeman shot dead in by a gunman in central Paris last night has been named as Xavier Jugele by a French policing group.

The Flag! organisation of LGBT officers said that Mr Jugele would have turned 38 in May.

It also emerged that the officer was among those who responded to the deadly terror attack at the Bataclan concert venue in November 2015.

Mr Jugele attended the high-profile re-opening of the venue a year on, telling People magazine he had attended to "to defend our civic values".

He added: "This concert's to celebrate life. To say 'No' to terrorists."

Last updated Fri 21 Apr 2017