Police are investigating the crash outside a train station (Picture: Matthieu CLAVEL / AFP via Getty Images)

One person has died and several more are injured after a car drove into a gathered crowd outside a train station in France.

A male suspect has been arrested after the crash in Caen,which left seven in critical condition and three more with minor injuries,AFP reported.

All the victims are said to be men between the ages of 17 and 40,who had been near a local bar when the attack happened at around 10pm.

Earlier in the evening,a fight had reportedly broken out at the bar,according to local media.

A major emergency response has been launched,and Bruno Coutanceau,a top security official for Caen,said: ‘For the moment,we are not dealing with a terrorist motive,but the investigation is only just beginning.’

The suspect is a 26-year-old man born in Russia,who was later arrested around 20km (12 miles) away in the port town of Ouistreham.

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Start your day informed with Metro's News Updates newsletter or get Breaking News alerts the moment it happens.He wasn’t previously known to police for anything more than traffic offences,according to local prefect David Claviere.Claviere claimed that the car ‘deliberately drove into pedestrians in the street opposite the train station’.Social media videos show people gathering around police cars and ambulances,with a large section cordoned off.Locals are being told to avoid the area around the Caen train station,and an investigation has been opened by the Specialised Crime Division.Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at .For more stories like this,check our news page.