French Policeman Under Investigation After Video Depicts Man Forcefully Tackled to Ground in Carcassonne

A French police officer is facing a judicial investigation after surveillance footage surfaced showing him forcefully throwing a man to the ground in the southern French city of Carcassonne. The incident comes just days after a separate controversy involving audio recordings of local officers making racist, misogynistic, and conspiracy-laden remarks.

A judicial investigation was opened on Sunday on charges of “intentional violence by a person vested with public authority.”

The video, shared on social media by Member of Parliament Thomas Portes, shows several officers gathered at the scene before one approaches a young man from behind and forcefully hurls him to the ground.

Once on the ground, the man is seen cradling his head in his arms as other individuals appear and begin to protest. Someone can be heard saying: “It’s being filmed.”

“In Carcassonne, the police are out of control!” Portes wrote alongside the footage.

The incident took place on 21 June during the Fête de la musique celebrations. The officers involved were reportedly responding to a report of noise disturbance.

In a statement released on Monday, the public prosecutor’s office confirmed that the man, identified as a 29-year-old homeless individual, was not the intended target of the police intervention. He was not arrested and did not file a formal complaint.

On 3 July, he was discovered in cardiac arrest at his camp. A subsequent investigation was launched to determine the cause of his death. However, according to the findings of an autopsy conducted on 9 July, “any suspicious traumatic injury pointing to the involvement of a third party” has been ruled out.

The Inspectorate General of the National Police (IGPN) has also been brought into the matter.

The prosecutor’s office confirmed it had referred the case to the Marseille branch of the IGPN on Sunday, “as soon as it became aware of this video.”

César R., one of four officers suspended following the earlier release of a video by the newspaper Midi Libre on 8 September, also appears in the new footage. He is present at the scene as a witness but does not intervene.

In the previously released recording, César R. was reportedly responsible for nearly 90% of the offensive remarks captured during the patrol. He was also identified as a volunteer with the National Rally’s security detail.

Marine Le Pen and Jordan Bardella’s party has condemned the remarks made by the officers in question, which included racist insults, calls for a coup, and the repetition of a transphobic conspiracy theory targeting Brigitte Macron.

In a statement sent to several media outlets, including Euronews, the National Rally announced that the officer had been expelled from the party and removed from its security team.

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