The terrorist gunman who murdered 84 people in Nice has been named as 31-year-old French-Tunisian Mohamed Lahouaiej Bouhlel, according to local media.

A married father-of-three, he is claimed to have been a professional delivery driver living in the southern French city.

He was already known to police before the attack for allegations of domestic abuse, theft and 'use of weapons', and had been arrested following a pub brawl on January 27.

His last appearance in a criminal court was as recently as March, when he was found guilty of violent contact.

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Terror: The 31-year-old killer, a French Tunisian, had already come onto police radar for 'acts of violence and use of weapons' after violence following a pub brawl in January

Chaos: Pictures from the scene of the deadly carnage show the lorry still standing whether the driver abandoned it, riddled with bullet holes

Probe: Police have raided this block of flats in Nice in connection with French-Tunisian Mohamed Lahouaiej Bouhlel, a father-of-three and professional delivery driver

He had also recently been put under probation after he fell asleep at the wheel and crashed into four vehicles on a highway, it is claimed in Spanish newspaper El Mundo.

However the man had never been associated with any acts of terrorism before the Bastille Day slaughter, and he was not under surveillance.

Several of his relatives and close friends have been taken into police custody for questioning and simultaneous raids are continuing in the Abattoirs area of Nice.

Neighbours of Bouhlel described him as a 'lonely' and 'silent' man, with one saying he never returned their greetings.

Meanwhile, investigators are using the city's 1,200 surveillance cameras to track the route of the lorry before the attack.

It is understood that Bouhlel had rented the truck on Wednesday from a specialist garage at Saint Laurent du Var by Nice Airport.

Police have discovered CCTV footage of the moment he boarded the lorry in the hills around Nice, according to reports.

It has also been claimed he was parked on the promenade for nearly nine hours before the attack, but was allowed to stay because he told police he was delivering ice cream.

Documents found in the cab included an ID, a mobile phone and a credit card.

He used the 25-tonne lorry to go on a mile-long killing spree, ploughing through crowds during Bastille Day celebrations on the Promenade des Anglais.

Witnesses described how the lorry 'zigzagged' in order to create maximum chaos in the celebrating crowd.

'We almost died. It was like hallucinating,' a witness told i-Tele.

'The lorry zigzagged – you had no idea where it was going. My wife, a metre away, she was dead.'

Another witness said: 'I even had time to see the driver's face. He had a beard and appeared to be having fun.'

Attack: The Frenchman used the 25-tonne lorry to go on a mile-long killing spree, ploughing through crowds during Bastille Day celebrations

The driver then got out of the vehicle and sprayed bullets into the terrified and fleeing people.

The driver was said to have shouted 'Allahu Akbar' – God is great – before being shot dead by a police officer, believed to have been female.

Pictures from the scene of the deadly carnage show the lorry still standing whether the driver abandoned it, riddled with bullet holes.

Security sources said a huge cache of guns, grenades and 'larger weapons' were later found inside the lorry.

There have also been unconfirmed reports that a second gunman was involved in the attack, prompting fears that there could still be an attacker on the loose.

A spokesman for the Interior Ministry, Pierre-Henri Brandet, said the man 'neutralised by the police' was the only one who was in the lorry and that there was no bomb inside.

President Francois Hollande said that the 'terrorist' nature of the attack 'cannot be denied', in a live speech following the horrific incident.

Fear: President Francois Hollande said that the 'terrorist' nature of the attack 'cannot be denied', in a live speech following the horrific incident

The premier pledged to 'hit' ISIS in Syria and Iraq 'even harder' after the devastating attack, saying: 'France is in tears, it is hurting but it is strong and she will be stronger – always stronger than the fanatics who wish to hurt us.'

So far there have been no claims of responsibility for the deadly attack. Reports that a number of grenades and other weapons in the lorry turned out to be fake have raised questions about how much support he might have received from a jihadist group.

Belgium will beef up security for national day celebrations on July 21 after the truck attack in Nice, the country's Prime Minister Charles Michel said today.

'We are determined to show that democracy is stronger than the terrorists,' Mr Michel said in Brussels.

'We of course intend to take extra measures for events linked to the national holiday,' Michel said.

Mr Michel said that despite the Nice attacks Belgium was keeping its terror alert level at the second-highest level of three, which means a threat is possible and likely.

Belgian authorities had previously anticipated a possible truck-style attack before the Nice carnage, in which at least 84 revellers were killed, he added.