The 16-year-old Greek teenager from the Roma community who had been shot by a policeman during a chase for robbing a gas station died Tuesday in a hospital in the Greek city of Thessaloniki.
The victim was seriously wounded in the early morning of December 5 by a police officer on a motorcycle who was chasing him as he fled after allegedly leaving a gas station without paying the bill for 20 euros, according to the Greek newspaper ‘Kathimeriní’.
Greek authorities claim that the young man tried to ram the motorcycle-riding officers during the chase. In turn, last week the accused policeman stated during an initial court appearance that he shot the young man because there was a real risk to him and his companions.
The 34-year-old officer has been suspended and has been under house arrest since last Friday on charges of intentional homicide.
Since the day of the shooting, numerous riots against police violence have taken place in the cities of Thessaloniki, Athens and other parts of Greece. These gatherings have often been violent, with members of the Roma community accused of throwing stones, setting fire to garbage cans and opening fire on authorities in a suburb of the Greek capital.
The demonstrations have taken place on the 14th anniversary of the fatal shooting that ended the life of 15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos during a police operation in 2008. The officer involved was convicted of murder and, since then, annual altercations on that date are usual in the Greek streets against police abuses.
