PARIS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 08th August, 2023) Five members of France's elite tactical police unit have been taken into custody as part of an investigation into a protester's death during the July civil unrest in the southern city of Marseille, media reported on Tuesday.
News outlets reported earlier in the day that approximately 20 officers had been summoned to the General Inspectorate of the French National Policefor questioning.
The five policemen have been arrested in relation to the death of the 27-year-old man named Mohamed Bendriss who was found dead in Marseille during the riots on the night of July 1-2, the according to the BFM tv broadcaster.
The police said that the cause of death was a heart attack due to a powerful blow to his chest. Later, the autopsy showed that the blow was from a round object similar to a blast ball, commonly used by French police during riots. The victim's phone also contained a video showing police officers arresting a protester forcing him to lie face down on the pavement.
A wave of violent protests swept France following the fatal police shooting of a teenager of North African descent on the outskirts of Paris on June 27.
