Police in France arrested a 22-year old man for trying to kill a soldier on patrol near downtown Paris.  The young Muslim convert identified as “Alexander D” reportedly confessed.

Police zeroed in on a specific suspect thanks to surveillance video footage and DNA found on a fruit juice bottle found in a bag near the crime scene.  The video shows the suspect buying a knife an hour before the attack, and praying 8 minutes before.

“He owned up to the attack” shortly after his arrest, said Paris prosecutor Francois Molins, who also denounced the tall, bearded suspect’s “quite clear intention to kill” the French soldier on patrol in the La Defense district.

Cops already had the suspect on their radar because of prior incidents involving theft and firearms.  They say he converted to a militant form of Islam a few years ago and was looking for an authority figure to attack.