19-year-old man detained for shooting with air rifle in Lleida shop and injuring two people
A judge released the young man provisionally with charges, accused of assault and public disorder following the altercations in Parc sobre les Vies. The investigation remains open.
Young man detained and released after shooting in a Lleida shop during altercations
A judge yesterday released the 19-year-old man arrested provisionally with charges following his alleged involvement in an attack on a shop in Lleida, according to elperiodico.com. The detainee used a compressed-air weapon to fire into the establishment, injuring two people, and had posted content on social media inciting violence against citizens of Pakistani and Indian origin, as well as against the police.
The Mossos d'Esquadra arrested him last Thursday morning. The Instruction Court acting as duty judge in Lleida agreed to his release with charges for the offences of assault, public disorder, criminal damage, threats and attacks on the exercise of fundamental rights and public freedoms, according to information provided by police sources to the EFE news agency.
The incidents on Sunday night
The incidents are part of a series of confrontations between shopkeepers of Pakistani and Indian origin and a group of young people—most of them minors, of Maghrebi and Spanish origin—triggered following several robberies at those establishments over recent days.
On Sunday afternoon, a citizen alerted public order officers deployed in Parc sobre les Vies that a young man was live-streaming on a social network encouraging attacks on Pakistani citizens and the Mossos themselves. The officers watched the broadcast and recognised the user: they had already identified him in an incident the previous week.
Near midnight, a group of young people began to heckle, threaten and shout racist slogans at an Indian citizen who had to take refuge in a supermarket belonging to acquaintances of his on Girona Street. Subsequently, the attackers caused damage to the premises and one of them fired around a dozen shots with an air rifle into the interior of the shop, injuring two men.
When patrols arrived, the assailants fled on foot or by scooter. Officers managed to detain a 15-year-old minor at the scene, accused of public disorder. The Sunday before, police had already arrested another minor for the same attack on the shop.
The identification of the main suspect
The following day, the victims filed a complaint with an injury report and provided a screenshot of the man allegedly responsible for the shots, which matched the user who had streamed live on social media. Investigators determined his identity and located him Thursday morning.
According to the Generalitat Police, everything points to the detainee being one of the leaders of the group of young people who confronted the shopkeepers of Pakistani and Indian origin.
Around a dozen arrests in total
Since the altercations intensified last weekend, the Mossos have made around a dozen arrests among members of both sides. Most were released after giving statements at police stations or before the courts.
The investigation remains open to identify and arrest the remaining participants in the disturbances.
Source: Google News ES — Crime (es)