Dortmund (dpa/lnw) - After the fatal shots at a 16-year-old Senegalese refugee during a police operation in Dortmund in August 2022, a lawyer for the police officers involved rejected the accusation of racism. "It is absurd to assume racist motives here," said lawyer Michael Emde, whose law firm represents three defendants, in an interview with the "Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger" (Wednesday edition). Because a "multi-cultural troop" was in action.
The Dortmund police were called to a youth welfare facility on August 8, 2022, where the 16-year-old is said to have initially threatened to kill himself with a knife. He was shot at by police with pepper spray and two Tasers. Finally, a police officer fired a submachine gun, and the youth died in hospital.
Prosecutors have charged the shooter with manslaughter. The four other police officers have to answer for dangerous bodily harm or incitement to do so.
The Dortmund police announced just a few weeks ago that after the incident they wanted to make a special effort to gain the trust of people with a migration background. "This operation, in which a 16-year-old Senegalese refugee tragically died, damaged trust, especially among people with a migrant background, that we have to restore," police chief Gregor Lange was quoted as saying.
"We do not tolerate any form of extremism, racism or discrimination, especially not from our own ranks," said Lange. When asked, a police spokesman said that checks did not reveal any such attitudes among the five accused police officers.
