A white rose in hand, some 300 people paraded on Saturday February 22 in Marseille in memory of a young man from a popular city, Mehdi B., killed a week ago by a police officer after a chase that followed the robbery of a store.
Read also: Marseille: tensions after the death of a robber killed by a police officer
The procession, which brought together young people and families, left the city of White House, where the 18-year-old young man was originally from. " RIP Mehdi " (Rest in Peace) and " Justice for Mehdi " proclaimed banners at the head of this white march. " Justice must say what happened, " said 24-year-old Haoulata. Former resident of the neighborhood, this crèche employee was friends with the young man's sister and grew up living with her family.
Many residents, who believe that their neighborhood is abandoned by the public authorities, confide placing their hopes in justice to determine the course of the events of February 14.
According to the first elements communicated by the parquet floor of Marseilles, that evening, after a robbery committed in a store close to the downtown area, three suspected criminals had fled in the car and had been continued by police officers. The fugitives had stopped their vehicle in the city of the Chestnut trees.
" Under conditions that the investigations will specify, a police officer opened fire several times after being himself and then one of his colleagues put in play by one of the criminals, " said the prosecution on Saturday, February 22. Prosecutor Dominique Laurens had indicated that the young man fatally injured was the one who allegedly put the police at stake.
A group of White House residents questioned the fact that he had threatened the police, based on testimony from people present at the scene. A judicial investigation was entrusted to the general inspectorate of the national police on the use of the arms of the police.
" No one should die during an arrest, unless he fires on the police. We would prefer him to be in prison for years rather than be dead, "one of the members of the group, Nair Abdallah, told AFP.
" You will not have hate speech about the police. The police are not all bad like the young people in the neighborhoods are not all bad (...) They are called to a dialogue so that there will be no more deaths like that, "he added. .