China News Service, December 6 (Xinhua) According to the Greek "China Greek Times" report, a 16-year-old boy in Greece was shot in the head by the police for driving out of a gas station without paying.
The incident ignited public outrage in Greece over police brutality in the country.
According to reports, in the early hours of December 5, local time, the owner of a gas station in Thessaloniki, a city in northern Greece, called the police after a Roma (also known as a Gypsy) teenager filled gasoline at the gas station for 20 euros. Left without paying.
The 16-year-old boy was spotted and chased by a Greek police motorcycle patrol patrolling near the gas station.
According to the official police statement, the boy did not heed the police's request to stop and tried to escape.
In the process, he also attempted to ram a police vehicle.
"The juvenile's actions put the lives of officers at risk and he ignored warnings issued by officers," police said in a statement.
A police source verbally clarified that one of the officers who were chasing the boy fired warning shots into the air, but the boy did not stop. The second time the officers fired at the vehicle, the boy was unfortunately hit in the back of the head by a bullet and injured. He was sent to a local hospital, but is still in the intensive care unit due to his serious injuries.
Relatives and friends of the boy gathered outside the hospital to express their outrage after the incident.
The boy's father yelled: "What if he doesn't pay? Should the police kill him? My child is dying, do they have to shoot?"
On the evening of December 5, 1,500 local people in Thessaloniki participated in a protest march.
During the period, fierce clashes occurred between the police and the protesters.
The protesters threw Molotov cocktails at the police, who responded with tear gas.
It is reported that the police officer involved has been suspended after his arrest on December 6 and is facing charges of attempted homicide.