In an unusual instance of officers facing a criminal case over on-duty violence, three police officers, on Thursday, were charged over the death of a 27-year-old man in the southern French city of Marseille during nationwide riots that took place in early July, prosecutors said.
Last month, France was jolted by fierce rioting over the killing of a 17-year-old in the Paris suburb of Nanterre, who was shot dead by a policeman for fleeing a traffic check and failing to comply with an order to stop his car.
The 27-year-old who lost his life in the riots was identified as Bendriss, who was a married man and a father of one. His widow is now expecting a second child. As per reports, Bendriss died after feeling unwell while riding a scooter.
His postmortem showed traces on his chest, of what as per reports could be the impact of a shot from a blast ball, known in French as an LBD and commonly used by the country’s police.
As per reports, there are signs that Bendriss was involved in theft from the store, and was being chased by police as he rode his scooter away.
