The real-life Spider-Man who scaled a building to save a small child dangling over a fourth floor balcony in Paris earlier this year is now a French citizen.
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Mamoudou Gassama, a Malian migrant who had been living in France, was officially granted French citizenship on Wednesday according to the BBC. Gassama had been granted French residency shortly after his heroic act of bravery and was then fast-tracked for full citizenship. Gassama also signed a contract for an internship with the fire service in Paris and received a personal thank you from French President Emmanuel Macron shortly after his heroic act.
“This act of great bravery exemplifies the values which help unite our national community, such as courage, selflessness, altruism and taking care of the most vulnerable,” the official decree signed by French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe read.
In May, Gassama spotted a young child dangling from a fourth-floor apartment balcony and quickly sprang into action, scaling the building in order to reach the child and lift them back to safety. His actions were caught on video and shared on social media, quickly going viral and earning Gassama the “Spider-Man” nickname. The 4-year-old child had been left home alone in the Paris apartment by his father who went out to the grocery store but delayed coming home in order to play Pokémon Go. The father was charged with “failure to meet parental obligations”.
“He took a long time to return home because he had decided to play the smartphone game Pokémon Go when he left the store,” French prosecutor François Mollins told the BFM television network (via ABC News). “He is devastated because he realizes what he did, and the tragic consequences that it could have led to.”
The father’s case is set to go to court sometime this month.
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