TRIPOLI, Libya (AFP) — Libyan prosecutors said Thursday they had identified three suspects in last month’s killing of the son of former leader Muammar Gaddafi, without specifying their identities.

Seif al-Islam Gaddafi, once seen by some as Libya’s heir apparent, was shot dead in his home in the northwestern city of Zintan in early February.

The prosecutor’s office said its investigation determined the “meeting place of the suspects, the time at which they went to the scene of the crime and committed it… as well as the identity of three suspects”.

The office added in the statement on Facebook that it had ordered their arrest.

While he held no official position in the North African country under his father’s rule, Seif al-Islam had been described as Libya’s de facto prime minister, cultivating an image of moderation and reform prior to the 2011 Arab Spring revolt.

But that reputation soon collapsed when he promised “rivers of blood” in the face of the uprisings.

Following a warrant issued by the International Criminal Court for alleged crimes against humanity, he was arrested by Libyan authorities in 2011.

A Tripoli court later sentenced him to death, but he was granted amnesty.

Marcel Ceccaldi, a French lawyer who had been representing Seif al-Islam, told AFP he was killed by a “four-man commando” who stormed his house.