The two main suspects in the Islamist attack on Charlie Hebdo magazine in Paris are said to have robbed a service station in the north of France.
They stole food and petrol, firing shots as they struck at the roadside stop near Villers-Cotterets in the Aisne region, French media report.
Police have made seven arrests in the hunt for two brothers, the main suspects. A third 18-year-old Hamyd Mourad has surrendered after hearing his name on the news .
Arrest warrants were issued for Cherif and Said Kouachi, said to be “armed and dangerous”.
A policewoman was also killed in a shootout in southern Paris on Thursday, triggering searches in the area as the manhunt widened for two brothers suspected of killing 12 people at a satirical magazine in an apparent Islamist militant strike.
A second person was seriously injured in the attack in the southern suburb of Montrouge, after which the gunman fled.
It is unclear if the incident is related to the Charlie Hebdo massacre, which traumatised France.
Montrouge mayor Pierre Brossollette said the policewoman and a colleague went to the site to deal with a traffic accident. A car stopped and a man got out and shot at them before fleeing.
Witnesses said the shooter fled in a Renault Clio car. Police sources said he had been wearing a bullet-proof vest and had a handgun and assault rifle. However, one police officer at the scene told Reuters the man did not appear to fit the bill of the Charlie Hebdo shooters.
A minute’s silence was observed at midday (11:00 GMT) across the country as France observed national mourning for the victims of the Charlie Hebdo attack. The bells of Notre Dame cathedral in the capital tolled in mourning.
The attack has raised questions of security in countries throughout the Western world and beyond. Muslim community leaders have condemned the attack, but some have expressed fears of a rise in anti-islamic feeling in a country with a large Muslim population.
