Rabat – French police have arrested the car driver who had violently hit and killed a 14-year-old Moroccan boy, named Aymen, in Montpellier during clashes between football fans on December 14, the website France Bleu reported on Tuesday.
The incident took place after the Qatar World Cup’s semifinal game between Morocco and France, which ended with Les Bleus defeating the Atlas Lions 2-0 and qualifying for the final.
Reports suggested that the driver intentionally ran over Moroccan football fans, who had tried to snatch a French flag from him. The teenage boy soon passed away from his injuries after arriving at the hospital. The suspect had been on the run since then.
France Bleu reported that the suspect was arrested in the early hours of Tuesday morning in Pyrénées-Orientales, near the city of Perpignan, located in France’s southernmost point.
The French news outlet quoted the public prosecutor Fabrice Belargent as saying that the suspect was arrested by the Territorial Directorate of the Montpellier Judicial Police “in execution of an arrest warrant issued by an examining magistrate.”
The source indicated that Aymen’s tragic death caused “great emotion” in the La Paillade district, where the incident happened, adding that thousands of people had attended the victim’s funeral last week.
Read also: Belgium, Netherlands Arrest Rioters Following Morocco’s World Cup Win
Aymen’s killing turned a moment of joy and celebrations after France’s victory into a tragedy that shocked the local community.
Following the defendant’s arrest, the mayor of Montpellier Michael Delafosse took to Twitter saying: “I would like to salute the commitment of the police forces. Justice can be served when the time comes.”
Delafosse expressed his condolences to Aymen’s family following “this terrible ordeal.”
The lawyer for Aymen’s family Marc Gallix said that the suspect’s arrest is a huge relief for the family, who are hoping that justice will be served, Corse Matin reported.
