The French decapitator sent 'selfie' with severed head

Paris

The man suspected of decapitating his boss and pinning his head to the gates of a gas factory in France sent a "selfie" with the severed head, a source close to the investigation said Saturday.

Yassin Salhi, 35, was arrested after driving his van into a warehouse containing dangerous gases near France's second city of Lyon. Authorities then found the severed head nearby.

Prime Minister Manuel Valls, who cut short an official trip to South America to rush home, warned France faced more attacks and that Friday's assault on a gas factory near the second city of Lyon would increase tensions in the country, putting citizens' resilience "to the test".

No jihadist group has claimed Friday's attack, which came on the same day as a massacre at a Tunisian beach resort in which 38 people were gunned down and a suicide bombing in Kuwait that killed 26.

The other two attacks have been claimed by the Islamic State group.

The prosecutor in the case said firefighters overpowered Salhi as he was trying to open acetone bottles in what is believed to have been an attempt to cause a larger explosion.

The firefighters then discovered the decapitated body of his 54-year-old boss Herve Cornara -- who ran a delivery firm -- near the car, along with a knife.

Cornara's head was pinned to a nearby fence.

"The head was surrounded by two Islamic flags bearing the Shahada, the profession of (the Muslim) faith," said prosecutor Francois Molins.

Authorities hope an autopsy, expected to be carried out later Saturday, will offer more clues. A source close to the case said it would seek to determine if the victim was first killed before being decapitated.

One man, Philippe Ouastani, said he turned out in solidarity with the victim. "It's unheard of to decapitate someone in the 21st century. What weapons do we have to combat that? Being here, together."

Another woman, wearing the Muslim headscarf, said she was "unable to speak" when she heard the news.

"These acts have got nothing to do with religion. The Prophet never said to kill innocent people," raged the woman, who requested to remain anonymous.

She tried to find words to explain the killing to her four-year-son.

"There are naughty people who have done bad things. The police will put them in prison to punish them for their silly, silly actions," she told him.