Horror in France: Lynched, filmed and abandoned... this is how Louis, a 17-year-old in state care, was murdered

A 17-year-old teenager named Louis died this Tuesday at the hospital in Perpignan, after spending five days in critical condition. He was the victim of a brutal assault that, according to authorities, had been carefully planned: they lured him to an isolated location under false pretenses to savagely beat him until he was unconscious.

The public prosecutor of Narbonne, Jean Philippe Rey, confirmed that the attack was premeditated: “The evidence gathered so far in the investigation suggests that these particularly serious acts were premeditated.”

The young man, who was under the care of the child welfare system (Aide Sociale à l’Enfance), was living in a foster home in Narbonne. According to the investigation reported by Le Parisien, he had not been placed there by court order, but at the request of his own family.

Ambushed, beaten, filmed and abandoned

Five young people, three minors and two adults, who knew each other through shelters and child welfare centers, allegedly ambushed him on Friday, June 19 to savagely beat him while filming the event.

A police source revealed to Le Figaro that the suspects had arranged to meet Louis, the victim, that same night at the Narbonne media library square. The group then headed to a nearby construction site, located on the banks of the Robine Canal, where they beat him until he lost consciousness.

According to Rey, on Saturday, June 20, around 9:10 a.m., police were called to a construction site located at 15 on the Quai d’Alsace, after being alerted by a worker who had found an unconscious young man at the site.

The young man “had bruises around his eyes, multiple bruises on his forehead, as well as bleeding from his mouth and nose,” added Jean Philippe Rey.

Videos of the assault, key to identifying the attackers

The public prosecutor of Narbonne confirmed that videos circulating on social media made it possible to identify the five suspects. In the footage, “a group of several young people can be clearly seen savagely beating the victim before leaving him at the scene, unconscious.”

According to a police source, Jordan S., 16, Lucas P., 17, Mathias T., 17, Isaac P., 18, and Kilian T., 19, are the five suspects who have been charged with “attempted murder.”

All have been remanded in custody and face life imprisonment.

Strong condemnation of Louis’s murder in Narbonne

On behalf of the conservative party Rassemblement National (RN), leader Marine Le Pen reacted on X: "The ordeal of young Louis, 17 years old, lynched in Narbonne, breaks the heart and fuels immense anger among the French in the face of this everyday barbarity that can no longer be minimized, downplayed, or concealed.”

"Louis, 17 years old, was lynched to death with unimaginable violence, filmed by his gleeful assailants, left to agonize through an entire night, and found lifeless on a construction site in Narbonne," said the president of the RN, Jordan Bardella.

For his part, Gabriel Attal, former Prime Minister of France and current leading figure in the Renaissance party, stated:

"Yesterday, Louis, a 17-year-old teenager, died in Narbonne. Lured into an ambush. Beaten brutally. Left for dead on a construction site." Attal strongly condemned "the perpetrators" and "escalating violence among a segment of our youth."