'He wanted the biggest, most powerful vehicle we have': Truck terrorist ordered a 'massive' 19-tonne lorry 'to create maximum number of victims' says garage boss
Truck terrorist Mohamed Lahouaiej Bouhlel demanded the 'heaviest and most powerful' lorry from a rental company so he could kill the maximum number of people, the garage boss has revealed.
The manager of Via Location told of the moment she came face-to-face with the ISIS killer when he hired the 19-tonne lorry which became a weapon of mass murder.
'The terrorist demanded the biggest vehicle we have,' she said. 'The heaviest, the most powerful, the most massive, to create the maximum number of victims.
'We only rent out lorries here, not weapons, not Kalashnikovs. We are all very shocked. We all live in Nice and are thinking of the families.'
The 31-year-old Tunisian, described by ISIS today as a 'soldier', used his credit card and driving licence to collect the vehicle from the garage in Saint-Laurent-du-Var, 30 minutes west of Nice on Monday.He was due to return the vehicle on Wednesday, 24 hours before he drove into crowds enjoying the July 14 Bastille Day celebrations on the Nice promenade.
Bouhlel did not have the correct driving licence to rent a lorry of that size, Le Figaro reported.
As the vehicle was a 19-tonne refrigerated lorry, he needed a 'C permit' licence, for which he would have required an extensive medical examination. 'C permits' expire every five years.
To qualify for one a driver must be at least 21 years old and have lived in France for at least six months, with a valid work permit.
The deposit for renting such a vehicle alone can run to thousands of Euros, and must be paid by credit card. The hire price is thought to be about £250 per day.
How the fanatic hired the lorry without this licence is unknown. MailOnline has sought comment from Via Location.
The firm's office, on an industrial estate surrounded by countryside, was locked up on Saturday as staff tried to come to terms with the tragedy.