Fugitive French prisoner 'the Fly' who staged deadly escape and prompted international hunt arrested in Romania
22 February 2025, 20:57 | Updated: 22 February 2025, 21:02
The French gangster known as 'the Fly' has been arrested in Romania after his deadly prison escape nine months ago, police say.
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French interior minister Bruno Retailleau thanked ''all the forces who permitted the arrest of Mohamed Amra in Romania today'', in a post on X.
Two guards were killed when armed assailants helped Amra escape from a prison convoy in Normandy last May, prompting a high-profile search.
Amra, 30, fled after being sentenced for burglary in the Normandy town of Evreux.
He was also under investigation for an attempted organised homicide and a kidnapping that resulted in death, prosecutors said.
Je félicite toutes les forces qui ont permis l’arrestation de Mohamed Amra en Roumanie aujourd’hui . Je remercie chaleureusement la Roumanie pour sa coopération décisive.
— Bruno Retailleau (@BrunoRetailleau) February 22, 2025
Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau has said that Amra had connections with Marseille's organised crime syndicates and was suspected of heading a drug trafficking network.
Amra's first offences occurred between the ages of 11 and 14, according to the prosecutor.
Nicknamed La Mouche (The Fly), Amra has also been referred to by other aliases such as Yanis, Momo and Schtroumpf (Smurf).
Two prison officers were killed and three injured after a van transporting prisoners, including The Fly, was attacked by four armed men in May 2024.
Amra's escape and violent history made him a symbol of the challenges faced by French law enforcement in tackling organised crime and ensuring the security of high-risk prisoners.
Un véritable commando a tendu un guet-apens contre le convoi du personnel de l'administration pénitentiaire à #incarville. Un des auteurs serait blessé par un tir de riposte.
— Axel RONDE (@AxelRonde) May 14, 2024
Soutien fraternel à l'ensemble des personnels de l'administration pénitentiaire face à cette tuerie !… pic.twitter.com/c8HrkToZxP
Four armed men in two vehicles targetted the prison van.
Details for the transport route and timings for moving prisoners are usually kept secret.
Footage showed the armed men, hooded and clad in black, surrounding several police vans at the toll booth. One of the vans appeared to have collided with another car.
An officer was also seen tending to his colleague lying on the floor and surrounded in blood.
Following the attack one of the attackers' vehicles - identified as a white Audi A5 - was found burnt in nearby Watteville. The other vehicle, a BMW 5 series, fled the scene in the direction of Louviers and Evreux, Le Figaro reported.
