Refugee teenager death caused by German police officers

BY|Infomigrants

Five German police officers have been charged over the death of a 16-year-old Senegalese boy who was shot last year. The police operation was “disproportionate from the start,” Dortmund prosecutors have said.

Five police officers have been charged over the death of a 16-year-old Senegalese refugee who was fatally shot last year, German prosecutors said on Tuesday (February 14).

German public broadcaster WDR quoted Dortmund prosecutors saying they believe the police operation was “disproportionate from the start.”

On August 8, 2022, police were called to a foster home in the western city of Dortmund in the North Rhine-Westphalia region because a teenager had allegedly threatened to hurt himself with a knife.

The victim, identified as Mouhamed Drame, appeared mentally distressed on the day of the shooting and had been staying in the youth welfare facility for a few days.

What happened during the operation?
Officers claimed the unaccompanied minor had run toward them with a knife, so they used pepper spray and two tasers before shooting him with an automatic pistol.

The teenager was hit by four projectiles from a submachine gun and died in hospital.

According to German news agency dpa, the officer who fired the shots was being charged with manslaughter, while his superior officer was being charged with incitement to dangerous bodily harm. Three other officers were charged with dangerous bodily harm.

The shooting came on the heels of several other fatal incidents involving police, and prompted protests and a debate about police brutality and violence against minorities in Germany.