A knife attack at a public transit station in eastern France Saturday left a 19-year-old dead and at least nine others injured, three of whom are in critical condition, authorities said Saturday.

The attack happened around 4:30 p.m. at the Laurent-Bonnevay metro station in the town of Villeurbanne, near Lyon, France Televisions reported.

The detained suspect is a 33-year-old Afghan citizen who had applied for asylum in France, police told the Associated Press. Fox News has learned that the suspect was not previously known to police

Two French officials told the AP the attack did not appear to be terrorism-related, and the national anti-terrorism prosecutor's office had not yet been asked to participate in the investigation.

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A manhunt was initially launched for a second attacker but police later determined that the detained man was the main suspect, two officials said. Police are still looking for possible accomplices.

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The suspect provided contradictory information to the police and it was unclear if the 19-year-old victim knew the attacker, according to officials. The motive for the attack was not clear.

"I am extremely shocked by the attack that has just occurred in the Lyon area during which one person died and several others [were] injured, some seriously," Lyon Mayor Gerard Collomb tweeted.

France remains on high alert after several deadly Islamic extremist attacks in 2015 and 2016.