Yoane Wissa scored 10 goals for FC Lorient last season.
Soccer star Yoane Wissa took to social media this week to show off scars he obtained at his home after an autograph-seeking woman allegedly threw acid on his face at his French home earlier this month.
Wissa, 24, who plays for French Ligue 1 side FC Lorient and represents the Democratic Republic of Congo in international tournaments, updated fans on Instagram and showed what happened to him.
“God is great,” he wrote in French on Instagram. "Thank you all for your messages of support – it goes straight to my heart. I'm better: we're working for a good recovery."
Wissa was attacked with liquid, causing his eyes to burn. The woman allegedly visited the player’s home earlier in the day of the attack to get an autograph for her son, which Wissa obliged, according to the Seattle Times. The woman then came back to Wissa’s home in the same evening and attacked the player, according to reports.
Following the alleged attack, FC Lorient released a statement, saying, “Yoane must undergo surgery. The club, experiencing shock, shows its support to Yoane and his family and is hoping for a quick recovery for him. Lorient counts on the authorities to deal with the author of this attack.”
A 32-year-old woman from Vannes, in the Brittany region, was indicted on charges of attempted murder, kidnapping and attempted kidnapping of a person under the age of 15, home invasion and violence with a weapon, according to Ouest France.
The murder and kidnapping charges stem from an incident in which she allegedly posed as a social worker to arrange a meeting with a new mother, who she allegedly assaulted before stealing her baby, RT reported.
Cops said the woman allegedly threw acid on the mother of the child as well, according to Le Télégramme.
"[The victim] confirmed that a woman posing as a social worker had contacted her by telephone and made an appointment for her the same day," cops said in a statement according to Le Télégramme. “Instead, the [woman], of whom she gave a fairly precise description, struck her in the head and projected on her a liquid which caused the burns observed.”
The victim was treated at Bordeaux hospital for burns and gave police a description of what occurred.
Police said they identified the telephone line used to make the appointment, went to the home connected to that phone line and found a boy as well as a little girl who had been kidnapped the day before, RT reported. The alleged suspect was taken into custody.
“She admitted to being the author of the abduction of the baby and the assault of her mother after posing as a social worker,” cops said in a statement, according to Le Télégramme. "She had hit the mother of the child on the head before spraying her with flammable liquid and setting it on fire.”
Cops said that the suspect told them she had “suffered a miscarriage, which she then concealed from those around her. Cornered by her lies and various stratagems, she had found no other solution than to abduct a newborn child who could physically correspond to the one expected," according to Le Télégramme.
Cops said they had noticed that alleged method of attack was similar to the attack Wissa suffered, and added that the athlete also had a new baby, according to RT. "The accused woman admitted to being the author of the assault on Mr. Wissa but denied having attempted to remove the child from him," cops said, according to Le Télégramme.
