JABAR EKSPRES – The mother of 17-year-old Nahel, who was shot by French police, said on Thursday (6/30) that she believes racism was the motive for her son’s death.
In an interview broadcast on France 5 TV channel, Nahel’s mother, Mounia, said that the police officer “saw the face of an Arab, a little boy”, and “wanted to take his life”.
Mounia said she did not intend to blame the entire law enforcement institution, she only demanded a police officer who killed her son.
“I don’t blame the police (institution). I blame one person: the person who took my son’s life,” she said.
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Nahel was shot dead by police on Tuesday (6/27) in the Paris suburb of Nanterre after he violated traffic laws and refused to pull over, according to prosecutors.
Prosecutors said Thursday that the officer who killed Nahel has been charged with intentional homicide and is being held in pre-trial detention.
The murder suspect’s police lawyer, Laurent-Franck Lienard, told BFMTV that his client was “devastated” and asked for “forgiveness from the victim’s family.”
“He didn’t wake up in the morning to kill people. He didn’t want to kill,” he added.
Riots broke out in France on Thursday night following the death of Nahel who was shot dead by police.
Protesters tried to set fire to the town hall in Clichy in the Paris suburbs, according to video footage circulating on social media.
The unrest prompted local authorities to impose a curfew. In Meudon – 9.1 kilometers from central Paris – for example, a curfew was in effect from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m., the local mayor said.
Jean-Didier Berger, mayor of Clamart City, located 8.7 kilometers from central Paris, also decided to impose a curfew from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. until Monday.
