According to media reports, a knife-wielding employee, who killed four of his colleagues at the police headquarters in Paris on Thursday (3 October), had converted to Islam about 18 months back. The attacker was later shot dead, RT News reported.

As per the reports, 45-year old Michael Harpon had converted to Islam in 2018, after he married a Muslim woman named Iham in 2014.

The investigators have suspected terrorist motivation behind his act as the nature of the attack was similar to those carried out by Islamic State and Al-Qaeda terrorists in the past. They have arrested his wife for questioning regarding the same.

However, the information on his religious affiliation is not yet confirmed by officials.

The incident took place when the deaf attacker stabbed three police officers and one administrative officer with a ceramic knife at the historic building at île de la Cité near the Notre Dame Cathedral. According to his colleagues, he worked at the technology department at the headquarters since 2003.

It has been reported that there were “tensions” between him and his direct supervisor, as the latter had recently reprimanded him over his refusal to interact with women. However, nothing has been officially declared as to what the perpetrator’s motive was.

Among the victims were three male police officers from the anti-terrorist department and a female administrator at the public security department. Another female employee of the human resource department was critically injured and has been admitted at the Percy military hospital.