A newly released CCTV video of Paris police arresting a young man named Theo Luhaka contradicts the testimony of the youth, whose claim that police had purposely inserted a baton in his rectum caused large-scale riots.
The brief video shows police approaching a group of youths including Theo on February 2nd of last year in the Paris suburb of Aulnay-sous-Bois and shows the officers rapidly lose control over what was initially an identification check.
During the arrest of Theo, his loosely fitted trousers canbe shown to have fallen down of their own accord, going against a statement by Theo who said the officer “lowered my pants and he stuck the baton in my buttocks,” shortly after the incident, Europe1 reports.
The creation of victimhood feeding the violence https://t.co/Vj8B1HN1zD
— Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) February 16, 2017
The video also briefly shows an officer in possession of a telescopic baton that he has insisted accidentally penetrated Theo during the scuffle as he was being arrested. Theo, while admitting that his trousers were too large and fell on their own, continues to insist the officer inserted the baton into his rectum on purpose and called it an “act of torture”.
Europe1 submitted the video to police trainers who specialise in baton techniques. The experts were sceptical that the officer could have purposely penetrated Theo with one saying the officer “had neither the ability nor the intent to hit an area as precise as the anus”.
Three of the four officers involved in the incident were recently reinstated after a year of suspension. The officer currently awaiting a court date for charges of aggravated rape remains suspended.
Eleonore Luhaka, the 38-year-old sister of Theo, commented on the reinstatement of the officers saying of her brother: “He looks good, but he’s not good, Theo, neither physically nor morally. He’s expecting a lot of justice, but here, by reinstating the police, what message is sent to Theo?”
A week on and the French authorities have failed to suppress the violence https://t.co/vnzOYwXtXD
— Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) February 16, 2017
The Theo case, and the resulting “Justice for Theo” demonstrations, led to riots across Paris’s migrant-heavy suburbs last year. On February 8th, the riots began to engulf areas like Tremblay-en-France, Montfermeil, Clichy-sous-Bois, Villepinte, and Blanc-Mesnil.
Two days later, an internal police inquiry announced that there was “insufficient proof” that the officer had purposely penetrated Theo with his baton. The announcement led to yet more rioting seeing dozens of cars being set on fire and police officers being attacked by armed mobs.
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.