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Join on Telegram Residents of the Spanish town of Torrejon de Ardoz, just outside Madrid, have come together recently in protest and mourning over the killing of Abderrahim, a 35-year-old Moroccan man, at the hands of an off-duty municipal police officer last Tuesday.
The official justification for taking Abderrahim’s life is that he allegedly tried to steal the officer’s phone. But many believe the true “crime” was simply being a non-white immigrant in a society still steeped in racial prejudice.
Abderrahim had lived more than half his life in Torrejón, where he met his tragic death. His family revealed he struggled with mental health issues and was under psychiatric care— an aspect that raises painful questions about the violent response he received.
At the protest, powerful slogans echoed through the streets: “Moorish lives matter,” “Fascists out of our neighborhoods,” and “These aren’t deaths, they’re murders.” These chants stressed the harsh truth that this was not an isolated act of negligence but part of a systemic pattern of violence.
Those who knew Abderrahim remembered him as kind-hearted and fragile. “There was no need to do what they did to Abderrahim, he was a kid who didn’t even weigh 60 kilos; bending his arm would have been enough,” said one protester.
Abderrahim’s family joined the demonstrations, grief-stricken but firmly demanding justice. His father, Akkouh Mimou, voiced what many believe: “If my son steals, the police should arrest him and bring him before a judge.” Those gathered around him echoed, “Stealing is no reason to kill.”
Video footage circulating online shows the officer applying a chokehold, his arm tightly constricting Abderrahim’s neck, refusing to release him despite pleas from bystanders begging him to let him breathe.
The officer was arrested on Tuesday for negligent homicide but was surprisingly released on bail two days later. The judge ruled there was no risk of flight, repeat offense, or evidence tampering. However, precautionary measures were imposed, including surrendering his passport and mandatory weekly court check-ins.
Activists condemn the decision to release the officer while Abderrahim’s family is left to bear the weight of a life unjustly taken for the remainder of their lives.
“It is unfair that the alleged killer is free. We demand recognition that this is neither an isolated incident nor negligent homicide,” said María Bennouna, director of SOS Racism Madrid platform.
This tragedy painfully echoes the murder of George Floyd in the United States, where a Black man died after a white police officer pressed his knee into Floyd’s neck for more than eight minutes, sparking global protests against police brutality and systemic racism.
