PROTEST and unrest erupted in the Paris region overnight after police shot dead a 17-year-old who failed to stop when ordered to by traffic police.
Video circulating on social media shows a police officer pointing a gun at the driver of a car, before a gunshot is heard. The car then crashes to a stop.
The teenager, named as Naël M, died of bullet wounds in the chest despite help from emergency services.
The officer accused of shooting him has been detained on homicide charges.
The shooting triggered a series of protests on Tuesday night in Nanterre, the area just west of Paris where the teenager was killed. Some 24 people were arrested following the disorder.
Naël M is the second person this year in France to have been killed in a police shooting during a traffic stop. Last year, a record 13 people died in this way.
According to newspaper Le Monde, police initially suggested the teen drove his car towards them with the intention of hurting them.
But footage posted online and verified by the AFP news agency tells a different story.
It shows two officers at the vehicle. One points his weapon at the driver through the window and appears to fire at point-blank range as he tries to drive off.
The agency also reports that a person in the video can be heard saying “you’re going to be shot in the head” – but it is unclear who says it.
Two others were in the car at the time of the shooting – one fled while another, also a minor, was arrested and held by police.
The incident sparked anger and disorder overnight, with cars and rubbish bins set alight and bus shelters destroyed. Fireworks were also set off near the police station. Riot police used tear gas to break up protesters, some of whom created barricades throughout the night.
