A 17-year-old French teen was beaten into a coma by a group of North African migrants and died from his injuries. The incident took place in the southern French city of Narbonne and five suspects, including three minors, have been arrested.
According to French outlet L’Independant, the victim, who has been identified as Louis, was attacked on June 19 and left outside a construction site. Authorities allege that five individuals were involved in the assault, three of whom are minors. Visegrad reports that the attackers were North African migrants.
A video filmed by the attackers shows the brutal beating, with men repeatedly slamming Louis' head with their fists and feet. They left him lying there when they were through and walked away. He was found critically injured.
Louis suffered severe injuries and remained in an induced coma for several days before succumbing to his injuries. Police later identified and arrested a suspect, who was initially charged with attempted murder.
The Narbonne prosecutor’s office said the death occurred while the five suspects were being presented before an investigating judge, meaning the judge was not yet aware that the victim had died when the attempted murder charges were filed.
Prosecutors have not publicly disclosed a motive for the attack. Some media reports and social media speculated that the suspects were migrants, but authorities have yet to confirm claims regarding their immigration status or ethnicity.
According to prosecutors, Louis was living in a foster home after being placed under the care of child protective services. Investigators also reviewed footage of the attack that was recorded by one of the suspects and posted on social media. According to Le Figaro, a public prosecutor said the footage showed "a group of several young men brutally beating the victim and leaving him lying motionless on the ground."
Narbonne public prosecutor Jean-Philippe Rey told L’Indépendent, "This is a case of rare violence that has deeply affected the criminal investigation officers in the district, especially since the victim was young."
