Philippe Boutron, 61-year-old driver and president of the US Orléans football club (3rd div.), Experienced a huge fright during his ninth participation in the legendary Dakar. On Thursday, December 30, 2021, he was injured in a leg by the explosion of his car near Jeddah before being operated on in Saudi Arabia. A criminal act?
Philippe Boutron must be repatriated to France, announced on Saturday January 1, 2022 the organization of the rally-raid while the Saudi authorities have ruled out an act “criminal“The organizers had previously explained that they did not exclude a “malicious act“ and, according to an AFP journalist, security has been greatly enhanced around the rally-raid bivouac.
The French Foreign Ministry – represented by Jean-Yves Le Drian – also called for the “maximum vigilance” after this “explosion“emphasizing that”the hypothesis of a criminal act is not ruled out“. But, in a tweet, the Saudi interior minister dismissed everything “criminal suspicion“ to explain this “accident“. According to him, five French people were in this assistance car including”one has been hospitalized and is in a reassuring condition“.
“The driver of the car sustained a serious leg injury and required surgery. His condition is improving (…). His vehicle had been brutally stopped by a sudden explosion, the origin of which is still unknown at this stage. Saudi police immediately attended and began their investigation, ruling out any possibility, including that of a malicious act.“, according to the statement from the organizer ASO published before the tweet of the Saudi authorities.