A 15-year-old boy was shot dead by a police officer in Marromeu during a protest against the official results that gave FRELIMO victory in the repeat vote in that municipality, the police confirmed.
Speaking to journalists today (13.12), Dércio Chacate, spokesman for the provincial command of the Police of the Republic of Mozambique (PRM) in Sofala, explained that the incident took place at the end of the day on Tuesday, when a patrol questioned “a citizen of apparently 15 years of age” who “presented visually altered behavior”.
According to the PRM, this was followed by reluctance and “disobedience” on the part of the minor, who tried to take an AK-47 from one of the officers.
“In this direct confrontation with the agents, a forced shot was fired, which hit the citizen and caused his death,” said Dércio Chacate. The case has been prosecuted, and the officer is being held at the Marromeu PRM police station, he added.
“The PRM is the most interested party in this case, and a team has therefore been dispatched to the Marromeu district to assess all the circumstances surrounding this criminal action,” he added. At least two Mozambican police officers were injured and four people arrested in riots that took place during the repeat elections in Mozambique on Sunday, the corporation’s general commander announced on Monday.
“Both in Gurué and Marromeu, stones were thrown [at the police]. We had two colleagues injured in Marromeu who are out of danger but still undergoing treatment,” said Bernardino Rafael, in the district of Palma, in Cabo Delgado, northern Mozambique.